Paradise
by Galinda01
Summary: No no no! She could NOT be falling for Satoshi Hiwatari! There must be an explanation! Maybe it was the heat. Or the romantic atmosphere. They were in Hawaii after all. Whatever it was, it would pass, because her heart belonged only to Dark, right? Right!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

_I would like to dedicate this story to my best friend and fellow Satoshi Hiwatari fan girl, Abby! Thanks for introducing me to DN Angel!_

_This story is loosely (very loosely) based off of a trip I took with our school band. (Flutes rule!!!) It was amazing, and what a place for Satoshi and Risa to work out their feelings! I hope you like it!_

_Also: Reviews are not only appreciated, but essential to my existence. _

Disclaimer: I no own DN Angel. I also no own any books or soundtracks mentioned in this story. L

Satoshi Hiwatari was ignoring her _again_, and Risa didn't like it one bit. It was one thing to not like her, it was a completely different thing to treat her as if she didn't exist, especially since they had to sit next to each other through a four hour flight. The last time they had been seat partners, he had slept through the entire bus ride. Now he was fully awake, but so engrossed in his book that he might as well be unconscious for all the entertainment he was.

She stared in disinterest at the in-flight movie. Beside her, Hiwatari quietly turned a page. She glanced at him and sighed. Nothing. She sighed again, a little louder this time. Still nothing. Apparently it was up to her to strike up a conversation.

"So . . . .isn't it funny how this always seems to happen, Hiwatari-kun?"  
"How what always seems to happen, Harada-san?" He didn't even look up from his book.

"How we always seem to end up sitting by each other? How does this keep happening?"  
"We don't always end up sitting by each other. It's just that my usual seating partner and your usual seating partner wished to sit together."

" . . . Right." She glanced over at Diasuke and Riku, and a flash of envy surged through her as her sister laid her head on Diasuke's shoulder. Lucky Riku - she was going to a tropical paradise with her boyfriend, while Risa was stuck sitting next to creepy Satoshi Hiwatari. "What are you reading.?" Risa tried again.

"Socrates in Love." He muttered, turning a page. She gasped.

"Oh my goodness! I _love _ that book!"

"You don't say."

"It's one of my favorites! It so sad! She _dies_!"

He finally looked up at her, and his expression told her he was not amused. "_Thank you_, Harada-san. I didn't want to figure that out for myself."

"Oh . . ." she said, catching the note of sarcasm in his voice. "Oh, I'm sorry Satoshi-kun . . . It's just so sad! She gets leukemia and-"

He snapped the book shut and gave her a death glare. "You know what? Why don't you just tell me everything about it, that way I won't even have to read it."

Obviously she didn't get the hint. "I didn't know you liked those types of books, Hiwatari-kun. Socrates in Love sounds a little sentimental for someone like you."

"It's for a school project." He muttered. "Niwa actually suggested that I read it."

"I bet Riku made him read it! Because I made her read it! So technically you're reading this book because I read it first!" She giggled at that thought. "Isn't that interesting?"

"Isn't . . . _what _. . . interesting?"

"The fact that something I did had an effect on you."

"Oh."

"So, do you like the book so far?"

He shrugged. "It's a very common theme in literature. Boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, girl comes down with terrible illness and dies. The end."

"But-but that's not all of it!" She cried, indignant.

"Really? What draws you to a story like this? Would you have enjoyed it so much if it had ended happily for every character?"

"Well . . ."

"Exactly. Writers like this strive to pull the heartstrings of their readers. It's really an overly used theme. There are dozens of versions of this book out there."

"Oh yeah? Name one!" She challenged. Socrates in Love was one of her favorite books - one of the few books she had actually enjoyed reading, and she would _not _have a stuck up snob in glasses berating it

"A Walk to Remember." He pushed his glasses up and reopened the book.

"Well . . . Name another one then!"  
"I really don't feel like playing this game with you, Harada-san." And with that, he returned to his book - the book he didn't even like.

"Hmph! Fine then." She said and put her headphones on. Knowing Hiwatari thought she was shallow and uneducated, she picked the CD she thought would make her seem mature and turned the volume up as high as it would go.

After a few minutes she realized he was trying to talk to her. She paused the song and took her headphones off. "Yes, Hiwatari-kun? Did you want something?"

"You're going to hurt your ears if you listen to music at that volume."

"I'll listen to it at whatever volume I wish. But thank you anyway, Hiwatari-kun." She replied coolly.

"Well," He said just as she was about to return to her music. "That's fine for you, but not everyone on the plane enjoys _The Phantom of the Opera _as much as you do."

" . . . Oh." Was all she could come up with. The music was really that loud? How embarrassing. To cover up her discomfiture, she replaced the headphones over her reddening ears, turning the music down a considerable amount.

"And anyway." Hiwatari added, his voice reaching her over the music. She glared at him and paused the music again.

"Yes?"

" . . . That's not even the original cast. It's the cast from the movie - a cast who made it painfully obvious they weren't trained in opera."

"Nuh-uh!" She said, proud that she finally knew something that the great Satoshi Hiwatari didn't. "The girl that played Christine was trained in opera! In fact, every character sang -"

"Except Minnie Driver, who played La Carlotta." He finished for her. "And Christine, or Emmy Rossum, was trained in opera _for the movie_. That's very different than having an actual operatic voice."

"You are so irritating!" She said, much to his astonishment.

"_I'm _irritating?!"

"Yes! Everything I like you automatically degrade! It's as if you can't stand not to show of your superiority!" She was proud of herself for using such a big word against Hiwatari.

He was quiet for a moment. "I never meant to degrade the things you enjoy. I was just stating my opinion." He shrugged. "Of course, I might've been a little harsh. I was just comparing it to the actual stage version. They changed a lot from it."

"You've seen the stage version?!" She gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. He nodded.

"Yes my father -" His voice caught on the word and he swallowed. Risa understood - Hiwatari's father had died the day Dark left. "He . . . He took me to see it once . . . .a long time ago."

"Oh . . ." She felt bad for making him think about his father. "Um . . .would you . . .would you like to listen to it? I know it's not up to your standards, but . . ."

"That's quite alright, Harada-san." He muttered. No. She was _not _going to let Satoshi Hiwatari go all angsty on her now.

"Come on, just one song!" She put it on shuffle, deciding that fate would find a song for him to listen to that wouldn't remind him of his troubled and sorrowful past. Of course, she wasn't thinking straight, if she had been, she would've realized that _The Phantom of the Opera_ is nothing but a story wrought with trouble and sorrow.

Sighing in defeat and knowing it was the only way to shut her up, he took the headphones from her. "If I listen to it, will you leave me alone for the rest of the flight?"

"Of course, Hiwatari-kun." She smiled. He put the headphones on and waited.

She watched him eagerly, but his face was an emotionless mask. She paused it when he removed the headphones. "What's wrong? Aren't you going to listen?"

"It's over already." He handed her the headphones back, and she smiled.

"_Well_?"

"Well what?'

"What did you think?"

" . . . I didn't like it."

"What? Why?"

He just shrugged and opened his book again. It was amazing how quickly he could go from angsty to emotionless. She sighed and looked down at the player. It was on track 11: Learn To Be Lonely.

Oh . . . Damn . . .


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_Thank you so much for your reviews. You have no idea how much I enjoy reading them! Much love, mah peeps!  
_

_Random Note: I'm listening to the Wicked soundtrack as I write this. _

Disclaimer: I still no own DN Angel. : (

She was flying. Really flying, in the arms of a black-winged angel. _Her _angel. He was carrying her, keeping her safe in his warm embrace. She reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck. He held her closer.

"I've missed you, Risa." He whispered in her ear. She sighed contentedly.

"I've missed you too, Dark."

"I promise, I'll never leave you again. I'll always be there for you. I love you, Risa." Oh, how she had longed to hear those words! How often had she lain awake at night, thinking of him, wondering where he was and how he was doing? Wishing she could just see him . . . one more time.

"Harada-san? Harada-san, wake up."

"Mmm . . . it's Risa." She murmured, snuggling closer to her beloved Phantom Thief. She sleepily wondered why he stiffened at her touch, but she was so blissful that he was here that she couldn't be bothered to question him. She'd hate to give him a reason to leave again.

"Um . . . I prefer to call you Harada-san." His voice sounded a little strained. A little . . . agitated?

"Why?" She slowly opened her eyes and looked up at her sweet Dark. Only . . . it wasn't Dark. Dark didn't wear glasses. As her eyes adjusted - for night had fallen while she had been asleep - she realized she was lying against Satoshi Hiwatari.

"Oh! Oh, I'm sorry, Hiwatari-kun!" She tried to sit up, but a sudden shaking made her scream and cling to him. "Earthquake!"

"Harada-san, we're in the air." He muttered under his breath. "And you really shouldn't be shouting. There are people trying to sleep."

The plane shook again, and she dug her face into his shoulder, whimpering. "Er . . ." He awkwardly put his hand on her shoulder. "It's just turbulence. The captain came on the intercom a few minutes ago and told us we might -" They were jarred again, and she gripped his arm harder. " - that we might experience a little bit of turbulence. Honestly, it's nothing to worry about." He tried to free his arm from her death grip, but she held on for dear life, especially when the next bout of turbulence - the strongest one yet - hit. She felt a scream welling up in her throat, but Hiwatari's hand quickly covered her mouth, stifling in. She heard him groan.

"Honestly, Harada-san. Haven't you ever been on a plane?"

"N-no!" She whispered, prying his hand away from her mouth. He took the opportunity to pull away from her and adjust his position in his seat so she couldn't latch onto him again. But she wasn't about to. All this jostling . . . it was nerve-wracking. And . . . she had never had a strong stomach. She gulped and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Oh no. Not now - not in front of Satoshi Hiwatari. The quaking began again, making her stomach churn.

"H-Harada-san? Are you okay?"

"N-no." She groaned. Immediately, he shoved a paper bag at her - not a moment too soon. Her stomach heaved as she emptied the contents of her stomach into the complimentary vomit-bag. Hiwatari swallowed and stared out the window. It was he most mortifying thing that had ever happened to her.

"S-sorry." She whimpered after the stewardess came and took care of the bag.

"Don't apologize." Murmured Satoshi. "You couldn't help it. Motion sickness is a common occurrence on a plane, especially when it hits rough air." He pressed a button on his watch and it lit up in the dark. "It should be about thirty more minutes."

"Really?" It sounded almost too good to be true. Had she really been asleep that long?

He turned the light off in his watch and rested his head against the seat. She could see his silhouette from the light of the moon. It would've been nice to lay her head on his shoulder again, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. One, she was completely devoted to Dark and wouldn't even_consider_ using another boy's shoulder as a pillow. Two, she was afraid he might push her away, and wouldn't that be embarrassing? Three . . . she didn't want to get too close to him, in case her breath reeked of vomit.

The plane shook again, but this time she fought back her fear. Hiwatari wasn't freaking out. She shouldn't either. She didn't want him to think that she was a baby.

Not that she cared what he thought, of course. It wasn't that at all. She just didn't like the way he treated her - the way he looked down on her. She hated the way his cold, blue . . . very blue . . . eyes scrutinized every single thing she did . . . okay, maybe she was going overboard. Actually, he hardly paid her any attention at all . . . but that was just as bad! So when he _did _pay attention to her, like when he was forced to sit next to her on a plane ride to Hawaii, she didn't want to make him hate her any more than he obviously already did.

Not that it mattered, of course. After they landed, she would find her sister and Diasuke and spend all her time with _them_. After they landed, she wouldn't have to speak to - wouldn't even have to _look__at_ - Satoshi Hiwatari again. Not that she would look anyway - she didn't like boys with glasses.

So she shouldn't be thinking about him. At all. She settled back in her seat and tried to ignore the turbulence by turning her thoughts to Dark. Yes, her wonderful Phantom Dark. She pictured all the possible things that could happen - him suddenly reappearing after a six month absence, swooping into her room, picking her up, and them flying away into a beautiful Hawaiian sunset. She ignored the fact that Dark had been a part of Daisuke - she didn't feel like trying to work that one out. She just made up her mind that he would somehow get his own body through some unknown occurrence. Yes . . . it would be perfect.

Or, she could be on the beach with her sister and Daisuke. Dark would swoop in, and though everyone would be excited to see him, he would only have eyes for her. Under the beautiful blue Hawaii sky, they would share a wonderful, meaningful kiss - in front of everyone of course. She internally giggled at the thought.

So distracted was she by her thoughts that she didn't even feel the plane starting to descend twenty-three minutes later. It wasn't until Hiwatari stirred beside her that she snapped out of her reverie. She gasped and leaned over him - making sure to hold her breath - to look out the window. Below them, the entire city was sparkling like jewelry.

"It's beautiful!" Someone commented. People began to awaken.

"Oh God!" Risa said suddenly, for the plane was descending quickly now. "Hiwatari-kun! Is this normal?"

"Is what normal?"

"The going down part?"

"Um . . . yes. How did you think we were going to get back on the ground?"

"I . . . I didn't really want to think about it."

"Ah."

"H-Hiwatari-kun?"

"Yes?"

"I-I think I need another bag . . ."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_Thanks again for all your reviews. Reviews are what keep me writing. Also, please correct me if I'm using the honorifics incorrectly. Maybe I'm dense, but I'm a little unclear on how they are used._

_Another random note: Now I'm listening to the Pan's Labyrinth soundtrack!_

Disclaimer: I _still_ no own DN Angel. : (

"Oh! Oh, _bed_!" Risa sighed and flung herself on the giant bed. "Oh, I'm so_tired_! I thought we would _never _get to our room!"

"_Risa_! Don't just dump your stuff in the middle of the floor! Put it away!"

"But Riku, I don't feel good. I was sick on the plane." She pouted.

"So you said." Riku muttered. "Well, you seem a lot better now that we're on stable ground, so _put your crap away_!"

"But I'm _so_ tired!" She whined, but she was already getting off of the bed. Her sister crossed her arms as she picked up all her belongings out of the floor and deposited them on her bed.

"Thank you." She said, setting down the one suitcase she had brought.

Risa flopped back on her bed and closed her eyes. "Ugh. What a flight! I never want to have to do _that _again." She said, then realized they would have to fly again in order to get back to Japan. "Ugh."

"It wasn't too bad. And you looked pretty comfortable on Hiwatari's shoulder."

Risa blushed scarlet, unable to believe her sister had seen that. How embarrassing! "I . . . that was nothing!"

"Really? Because you were like that for a long time it was awfully cute, and he didn't seem to mind either. He just sat there reading while you snoozed away on his shoulder." She giggled, and Risa hit her with a pillow. "Hey, I'm just kidding!"

"It's not funny! You know I only love Dark!"

"Yeah, yeah." Riku rolled her eyes. "Though you did look awfully cute together."

"I was sleepy. I told you I didn't feel good. And anyway, he woke me up eventually. It would've been nice if he'd let me sleep through the turbulence."

"The plane's shuddering would've woken you up and you would've panicked even more." A cool voice replied from the doorway. Both girls turned to see Hiwatari and Diasuke waiting outside their room. Risa panicked, wondering just how much of the conversation he had heard. She knew she shouldn't worry, that she shouldn't care what Hiwatari thought of her. After all, she was _Dark's girl_. That proved something, didn't it? How many other girls in their school could say that?

"What are you doing here?" Riku asked, going over to her boyfriend. "Are you even allowed on this floor?"

"Not usually, but we were just on our way to get dinner. The hotel's providing our meal for tonight."

"Oh thank goodness! I'm starving!" Risa jumped up from the bed.

"Hey! Weren't you just complaining about how exhausted you were?"

"Well . . . I'm more hungry than I am exhausted!" She exclaimed with a smile. "Now, where's the food?"

"Down on the main floor." Daisuke put his arm around Riku and escorted her out the door. She sighed contentedly. Risa followed, tagging along behind the two. Hiwatari followed along silently in apathetic detachment.

"I can't believe we're here!" Diasuke was chattering. "It's going to be _so _much fun! I can't wait until tomorrow. After our lecture of course . . ." They all groaned at the prospects of a three hour lecture on Hawaii. All except for Hiwatari, who remained silent as usual.

"Oh . . .great." Riku muttered when they reached the elevators. Already a huge crowd of students were gathered outside, waiting.

"Ugh. This is going to take forever." Risa muttered. Her sister nodded.

"Yeah, it would probably be faster if we took the stairs." Daisuke said. Everyone agreed, except of course for Risa.

"But we're on the seventh floor!"

"Oh, it's not that bad." Riku opened the door leading to the stairs. "And how do you expect to hike up a volcano if you can't even make it down the stairs of a hotel?"

"Well . . . I wasn't really going to think about that." she mumbled, lagging behind everyone. Risa had never enjoyed anything that was remotely physically demanding, and that included going down six flights of stairs.

She was out of breath by the time she reached the bottom. Riku and Daisuke were still going strong, and she felt a little embarrassed that she wasn't at her physical peak. Until she saw Hiwatari.

She noticed him at the same time Daisuke did. "Hiwatari-kun . . . a-are you okay?"

"Fine. I-I'm fine. . . really."

He didn't look fine. Well, okay, he always looked _fine_, but he didn't look well. He was leaning against the wall, his eyes closed. One hand was massaging his temples while the other was flat against the wall for support. His was breathing harder than normal.

"Hiwatari-kun, do you need some help?" Riku offered, but he held his hand out to stop her, not opening his eyes.

"I'll be okay . . . once the room stops rocking."

"Here, let me help you." Daisuke approached him. "You should probably sit down."

"I'm fine." He insisted, but Daisuke had already wrapped Hiwatari's arm around his shoulder. Hiwatari sighed but didn't move to stop him.

"S-sorry." He muttered.

"Don't be. Have you eaten today?"

"I had bread for lunch, but that's all. I don't usually eat on planes. It makes me sick."

"Well that explains it! You know you're not supposed to go without eating! It's not healthy!"

"I know." Hiwatari pulled his school ID out of his pocket and flashed it at the receptionist. The rest followed the suit, and she nodded at them to enter the dining room, looking curiously at Satoshi.

Daisuke maneuvered them to an empty table in the corner and helped Hiwatari sit down. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay." He insisted. "It's just . . . I have low blood pressure, and sometimes I get dizzy." Risa gasped, and he glared up at her. "It's really not a big deal. No reason to get worked up."

"Are you going to be okay with the hike on Thursday?" Riku asked.

"Of course. I'll be fine." He sighed and started to stand up.

"Oh _no you don't_!" Diasuke said, carefully but firmly pushing him back into a chair. "The last thing we need is for you to faint!"

"Really, Niwa-san. I'm quite capable of-"

"Just stay here. I'll bring you something to eat." Daisuke said and quickly made his way through the bustling crowd of students toward the buffet. The Harada twins stayed with Hiwatari, making sure he didn't suddenly pass out.

"Oh, Hiwatari-kun, what happened?!" A shrill voice made all three of them look up. Four of his fan girls were standing there, their hands covering their mouths in horror.

"We saw Niwa-kun bring you in!" One girl exclaimed. "Are you okay?!"  
"He's fine." Riku stood up. "But the last thing he needs is to be crowded. I think it would be best if all of you would leave and let him have some air." When they didn't move, Riku took a step toward him "If you care about him at all you'll leave him alone! He can't be bothered with you right now. He's sick!"

The girls looked infuriated, but backed off. Risa smiled, proud of her older sister.

"Thank you, Harada-san." Hiwatari muttered. His elbows were resting on the table and his face was in his hands. "I don't feel up to dealing with them right now."

"No problem, Hiwatari-kun." Riku replied wit h a smile, sitting back down. Risa's gaze stayed on Hiwatari, worried that he would hit the floor at any moment. However, he held his composure, and soon Diasuke had returned. He set a plate piled high with food in front of Hiwatari. He groaned, glancing down at the medley of fruits, meats, and vegetables.

"Sorry, I didn't know what you would like." Daisuke said, grinning.

"Niwa-san, I can't eat all of this." He muttered.

"You had better." He was insistent. Risa and Riku both got up to get something to eat while Diasuke forced Hiwatari to eat.

"Wow, I didn't know he had low blood pressure." Riku said thoughtfully as she and her sister got in line at the salad bar. "Have you ever seen him look like that?"

"Nope." Risa said curtly, piling her plate with interesting looking fruits. "And frankly, I don't care."

"Risa!"

"Well I don't!" She replied with stubborn determination. She would never admit to her sister that she was worried about Hiwatari. She would never let her live it down. Sure, Riku could worry all she wanted - she already had a boyfriend. If Risa showed any compassion to him, especially after falling asleep on his shoulder, Riku might get the wrong idea. "And I don't know why you care either. I mean, it's Satoshi Hiwatari. He's never been exactly _friendly_ to you."

"But he's a friend of Diasuke's, and any friend of Diasuke's is a friend of mine . . . no matter how frosty he may be." they both shared a smile at Hiwatari's expense.

Back at the table, Hiwatari was glaring stonily at Diasuke as he ate. After the girls sat down, Diasuke went to get something for himself. Hiwatari rolled his eyes at their concern but said nothing.

"So, Hiwatari-kun." Risa said with a smirk. "Riku and I were just wondering . . ."

"Yes?"

"Exactly how many fan girls have you got now?"

He looked up at her, his glasses flashing. "I have no idea what you mean."

She giggled, enjoying making him uncomfortable. "Oh, sure you do. I mean, look at all the love notes they leave you. Interesting, isn't it, that there is a Satoshi Hiwatari fan club."

"Not really." He said coldly. "Adolescent, maybe, but not interesting in the least."

"Oh." Risa said, grinning, for she had come to a conclusion as to why Satoshi Hiwatari was always so distant to all the girls, while so close to Diasuke. It was the only thing that made sense, and it would explain a lot about him. He did act rather peculiar at times. "Hiwatari-kun?"

"Yes, Harada-san?" He said more out of politeness than interest.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

She bit back a smirk. "Do you . . . do you like boys?"

"Risa!" Riku gasped.

"Well, I just want to know! And if he said yes, it would be a good way to get all those girls off of his back!"

"Ahem." Hiwatari cleared his throat. "I believe that my sexual preferences are none of your business, _Harada-san_."

"Wow, there are so many people here -" Diasuke stopped, a plate of food in his hands, and looked from Risa to Hiwatari, who were sending each other death glares. "Um . . . did I miss something?"

"No." They both said in unison. He looked at Riku, but she just shrugged helplessly.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_Well, I was listening to Wicked when I started this chapter, but I switched to amazing German Techno music. Thought I'd shake things up a bit! Mmm-sa mmm-sa mmm-sa mmm-sa - - - __Uh . . . techno sound effects. : )_

_Okay, a short author's note: College starts up again on Monday, Jan. 14. My updates might start coming a little less frequently, but I promise at least one update per week.. I'm going to try to get as much written before Monday as possible so I can update maybe twice a week. _

Disclaimer: I still no own DN Angel : (

Their hotel was called the Sheraton Princess, and it was set amid the chaos and tumult of Waikiki. Outside, performers did their best to attract a crowd and earn money. There were musicians on every corner - on their way to get breakfast, which was only six blocks from the hotel, they passed three drummers, one saxophonist, a flutist and two beat-boxers. They also passed a man with two parrots sitting on his shoulders and a juggler.

"Wow! This place is amazing!" Riku said, dropping a dollar in the hat of the saxophonist. He quickly played a trio of notes right at her as a thank you and she nodded in return. Risa, however, was unimpressed.

"Yeah, it's interesting, but I thought it would be more . . . tropical than this."

"We're in Waikiki, Risa. It's a tourist haven."

"Well, I know that, but I just didn't expect the city to be so _big_!"

"Ugh! Not again!" Riku said, glaring toward the crowded entrance to Perry's Smorgy - their breakfast restaurant for the entire trip.

"Don't worry, Riku. Look, the line's moving fast!" Risa was right - all the students had to do was flash their food voucher and they were permitted to enter the restaurant for free.

"Well . . . there had just better be enough seats. . . ."

There were. About ten minutes later they found themselves in a circular booth in the corner with Diasuke and . . . yep . . . Hiwatari. Perry's Smorgy was an open restaurant - meaning birds could fly in whenever they felt like it. They never bothered the customers, but actually added to the scenery. Sure, there was a roof over their heads and a wall at the front for the door, but the entire right wall of the dining area was completely gone. There was even a small pond , blocked off by a wooden fence.

All their plates were piled high with food - Risa and Riku especially, breakfast being their favorite meal. The only person who wasn't eating was Hiwatari. He didn't really seem to be himself - he was staring into his cup of coffee through heavy lidded eyes. His expression was dazed.

"Hiwatari-kun, aren't you going to eat?" Diasuke asked.

"Nah." He said, taking a sip of coffee and grimacing slightly. "I don't eat breakfast."

"What?!" Both Harada twins exclaimed, then Riku added "Don't you get hungry?"

He shook his head.

"Um . . . a-are you feeling alright?" Risa asked. The implied meaning was _"You're not going to pass out again, are you?"_

He nodded. "I'm not a morning person. It takes me a while to wake up . . . well . . . you know." He muttered, and they all understood. Another side effect of low blood pressure.

"So, what's on the agenda today?" Riku asked, trying to break into conversation. Diasuke pulled a folded up itinerary out of his pocket and looked.

"Let's see . . . Tuesday . . . Tuesday . . . ah, here we go." He looked. "Well, after breakfast we are to report back to the hotel . . . ah, we're going to take a tour of the island!"

"So today is basically us riding around on a bus?

"I guess." Diasuke shrugged. "Well, this should be interesting."

"Oh, yeah." Risa grinned. "Riku, mom said she wants a coffee cup! Do you think they would have any at the mall?"

"Probably. You can get her one there. I'm going to wait until we visit the Polynesian cultural center."

"That's . . ." Diasuke looked at the itinerary again. "Next Monday." Just like in school, they had Saturday and Sunday off. They also had the afternoons and evenings to do whatever they wanted. Risa planned on spending all her time on the beach and in the shops.

"Is that really all you're going to have, Hiwatari-kun?" Diasuke said nervously. "It will be a while before we have lunch."

"Really, I'm alright." Hiwatari said softly. He took his glasses off for a second and rubbed his eyes, trying to wake himself up a little more.

Risa took a drink of her pineapple juice - she was normally not a fan of pineapple, but this was _amazing_ - and looked from Riku to Diasuke, knowing they were going to want to sit together on the bus ride to the Dole plantation. Which meant she was going to sit next to . . . oh . . . great.

------------

"Hiwatari-kun!" Risa tapped her feet. "Not this time! _I_ get the window seat_this time_."

Hiwatari's eyes opened slightly, and he sat up. "What are you talking about?"

"You got the window seat on the plane. If all you're going to do is sleep, then at least let me have the window seat so I can enjoy the scenery!"

"Hmm." He looked a little annoyed, but scooted over so she could sit by the window. She squeeed past him and flopped down.

"Um . . . thank you."

His response was to close his eyes and lay his head back.

"Hmph!" Risa crossed her arms and looked out the window.

Pretty soon they were heading down the street. Their first stop was a good way away from Waikiki, but fortunately the landscape was enough to keep Risa occupied - once they got out of the city at least. She stared in amazement at the ocean. The water was blue - actually _blue_! While she was used to an ocean view from her bedroom, the waters there were grey and bland. She had never seen such a beautiful sight before. Maybe when Dark showed up . . .

"Having fun with Hiwatari-kun?" Riku asked, snapping Risa out of her reverie. She and Diasuke were sitting behind them.

"Riku, be quiet." Risa hissed, but Riku continued, grinning.

"He must be really tired. Are you going to let him sleep on your shoulder?"

"Riku! Diasuke, make her stop!"

"Ah, I'm not getting in the middle of this!" Diasuke gasped.

"Good idea. You should probably stay out of it." Riku said, but her tone was loving. She turned back to Risa. "So, will you two be spending the_entire_ trip together?"

"No! Leave me alone, Riku!"  
"No way, this is my chance! You teased me about Daisuke, now I get payback." Riku said, grinning. "Besides, I wouldn't _actually_ let you like Hiwatari. He's nice and all," She glanced at Diasuke "but . . . he seems kind of strange."

"You know, Harada-san, it's really impolite to talk about someone behind their back, especially when they're right in front of you." Hiwatari turned around and gave Riku an icy look.

"H-Hiwatari-kun!" She gasped, turning as red as Diasuke's hair. "I-I'm so sorry!" He simply turned around and closed his eyes again. Riku glowered. "You know what? You should've mentioned that you were awake!"

"You shouldn't have been talking about me." He replied calmly, only frustrating her more.

"Since when do you care what I think? Since when do you care what anyone thinks?"

"Riku-" Risa began.

"I don't." Hiwatari answered. "But nonetheless, it was impolite of you." He glanced around at his red-headed friend. "Don't you agree, Diasuke?" Now he was just being mean.

"Wha-wha-wha hey! Don't bring me into this!"

Satoshi just smirked at him and turned back around.

"Hiwatari-kun . . . I'm really sorry." Risa murmured, not wanting Riku to hear. He simply waved it off as if nothing had happened.

"Hey, we're stopping!" Someone said. Everyone looked outside and gasped - they had stopped in front of a small but welcoming beach.

_---------_

_I would like to thank the ONE PERSON who reviewed for my last chapter. (Glares at everyone else) Look, if the chapter sucks, don't be afraid to tell me! I at least want SOME feedback! It's what keeps a writer going!_


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_Currently listening to the Hairspray soundtrack! If it's not already painfully obvious, musicals are one of my many obsessions. _

Disclaimer: I still no own DN Angel.

They weren't allowed off of the bus until they got their instructions from their teacher. Risa waited impatiently while he went through the rules. They would only be on the beach for ten minutes, he explained. There was a much bigger beach down the street from the hotel, and the could visit it in their spare time later. They were here because it would make a great photo opportunity - this was a man made beach, after all, whereas the one near the hotel was natural. Risa quickly pulled her digital camera out of her bag and took a quick picture of Riku.

"Hey! I wasn't ready!" Her sister complained. Risa looked at the picture and laughed.

"No, you weren't!"

"Delete that right now!" Riku fumed. "Risa, if you keep that picture, I'll-"

"No!" Risa said, holding the camera out of her reach.

"Give it here!" She reached over the seat.

"Watch it." Hiwatari said in his usual monotonous voice..

"What is going on back there?!" All eyes turned to them. Riku was practically half way over the bus seat reaching for the camera. Risa was holding it up and away, and Hiwatari had moved to the very edge of the seat. They froze, then the two girls sat back down quickly. The teacher gave them a disapproving glance before continuing.

"Anyway, as I was saying . . . we won't be going back to the hotel until five, so unless you want to spend the rest of the day in wet clothing, I suggest you stay out of the water." He paused and looked at the bus driver. "Um . . . is there anything you want to say?"

"Yes, actually." The driver stood up. "Hawaii is a unique and beautiful place." He began. The students sighed and settled back in their seats in preparation for what was certain to be a long and very boring speech. "So we ask only one thing. Please do not uproot any of the plants on our island. Not only is it taking away the beauty of our island, but it is also illegal to bring any living thing back with you to the mainland." Everyone looked at each other, and he continued.

"Hawaii is full of one of a kind plants and animals, and while we enjoy having tourists visit our islands, we are always worried that someone is going to one day sneak a rare Hawaiian plant home with them, plant it, and cultivate. Should that happen, Hawaii would lose it's appeal. The rare plants and animals are what makes our island so great. So I ask you, please, don't pick any of the plants, and don't try to sneak a rare tropical fish on the plane with you." The last part was a joke, but few people laughed. Mostly, everyone was waiting to get out on the beach. Their guide cleared his throat. "Um . . . that's all I guess."

"Alright everyone. . . . I'm just going to move out of the way, and -"Their teacher didn't get time to finish his sentence. Every student was out of their seat instantly and stampeding toward the front of the bus. "Ah!" He cried as he was pushed aside.

"Wow!" Daisuke cried. "It's _amazing_!" He grinned as Risa took a picture of him.

"Okay! Let's get one of the two lovebirds!" She said, indicating for Daisuke to move closer to Riku.

"Alright!" Riku said. "Hey Hiwatari-kun, come over here and take a picture with my sister!" She shouted. _Shouted_. In front of everyone. Risa felt herself turning red.

"R-Riku! That's not funny!"

"What was that?" Hiwatari asked, approaching them.

"Oh! Nothing. Nothing at all, Hiwatari-kun!" Risa said nervously. "We were just - hey! Riku! Give it back!"

"Smile you two!" Riku held up the camera she stole from Risa's hands. The camera flashed, and Riku bust out laughing.

"Let me see!" Risa cried, and Riku turned the camera around. Risa bit back a grin. She looked absolutely horrified, and Hiwatari was scowling at the camera.

"Do you want to see, Hiwatari-kun?" She asked, smiling.

"No thank you." he muttered. Diasuke looked at the picture and smiled.

"Hiwatari-kun! You look angry."

" . . . I'm not." He murmured. "That's just the way I photograph.."

"Riku, give me my camera back! I want to take a picture of the ocean!" Risa snatched the camera away from her sister and snapped several pictures of the blue waters. The beautiful blue waters. The very very . . . tempting blue waters. It was awfully hot out. "Hey! Do you guys want to wade in the water?"

"Um . . . as long as we don't get our clothes wet . . . sure." Riku said. She rolled up her jeans to her knees. "Diasuke?"

"Sure, I'll come along." He said. He was already wearing shorts, as was Risa, though hers were a lot shorter than his. "What about you, Hiwatari-kun?"

"I'd . . . rather not." Hiwatari muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets.

"Oh come on! It'll be fun!" Risa pushed.

"I'm content to stay right here, thank you."

"Hmm . . . suit yourself then." She said and ran off toward the water. Let Hiwatari waste his vacation on the sand. She was going to _enjoy _her time in Hawaii.

She took her sandals off and stepped out onto the wet sand. Almost immediately her feet were covered by a gentle wave, and she giggled. When the wave receded, her feet slipped a little deeper into the sand. She giggled again and walked out farther. Another wave came, a little stronger than before. The water went up to her shins this time, and she laughed out loud as her feet were buried even deeper than before.

She glanced over her shoulder at Riku and Daisuke. They were holding hands, smiling. He reached down and picked something up. . . . A small shell. Risa watched as he checked to make sure there was nothing living in the tiny conch, then smiled gently as he gave the shell to her sister. Such a small gesture, yet it was so sweet in every-

"Risa! Look out!" Riku called. She barely had time to turn and brace herself before a much larger wave hit her. It was so strong it nearly knocked her off of her feet, but fortunately she stood her ground. The water only came up a little past her knees, so her shorts were saved, too. She laughed aloud.

"Wow! That was - ah! My shoe!" she watched in horror as one of her sandals went floating off, dragged back with the strong wave. "No! Give that back!" She commanded, as if the ocean would listen.

"You had better get it Risa!" Riku called.

"But I'll get wet!" She cried, but with every second she was wasting, the shoe was getting farther and farther away. Obviously no one was going in to get it for her. She tied her shirt in a knot so it wouldn't get wet and gave one last distressed look at her sister before chasing after the lime green sandal. The water was warm, at least, but by the time she caught up with her shoe the ocean had risen to her waist, completely soaking her bottom half. She made a quick grab for her shoe and then hastily retreated back to the shore. Riku was having a grand time - she was doubled over, laughing. Daisuke simply gave Risa a sympathetic smile.

"Shut up, Riku!" She shouted, furious. She put her sandals back on and glowered at her sister.

"I'm sorry, Risa. But you have to admit, it is kind of funny!"

"No it's not!" She cried as she untied her shirt. "What am I going to do now?"

"Well, it looks like you're going to walk around in wet shorts for the rest of the day. It's your own fault, you know. You shouldn't have taken your shoes off so close to the water."

"Riku! Be serious! I can't go around like this all day!"

"Well it looks like you have to!" Oh, she was enjoying this.

"Hmph!" Risa said and turned around, only to run into Hiwatari. He caught hold of her arm before she could fall back in the water. "Ack! Sorry Hiwatari-kun!"

"Here." He said, handing her a fluffy white towel.

"Where did you get this? You didn't bring a towel with you, did you?" She asked, trying to remember if he'd had a towel with him when he boarded the bus . He shook his head.

"No. There are a few spares on the bus, along with a first-aid kit. They're supposed to be used in emergencies."

"Th-thank you, Hiwatari-kun." She murmured.

"It's nothing." He said stiffly. "The bus driver didn't really want us to use them, but - Is there something I can help you with, Saehara-kun?"

"Hmm." Saehara stood up straight and peered straight into Hiwatari's eyes. "The reporter in me smells a story!"

"Does it now?" Hiwatari said in disinterest.

"Yeah. Your fan girls would _love _to know . . ." Here he whipped a pen and a small pad of paper from his back pocket. "are you and Harada-san . . . the _younger _Harada-san . . .as in . . . _you_. He pointed at Risa with the pen. " are you two . . . a couple?"

"_What_?!" Risa gasped, appalled. "Where would you get an idiotic idea like that?! Like I would ever date _him_ . . . er . . . no offense, Hiwatari-kun."

"None taken. Does that answer your question, Saehara-kun?" He asked calmly. Saehara shook his head.

"No, I think you're lying, Hiwatari." He didn't bother to add an honorific. Hiwatari's eyes narrowed.

"If we say that there's nothing going on, then there's nothing going on."

"Yeah! We're just friends!" Risa added. Hiwatari gave her a peculiar look then, and she wondered what she had said wrong.

"Grr . . . deny it all you like . . . but my reporter's instinct is never wrong!" He muttered, turning away from them. "You two will end up together before the week's over! Just wait!"

Risa felt a blush creeping up on her. What was it with everyone?! Didn't they realize she only had eyes for Phantom Dark?!

"They're calling us back to the bus." Hiwatari muttered. Risa looked up and sighed. She'd hardly got to spend any time on the beach - and she most certainly didn't enjoy it.

"We're going to the beach after the tour . . . right, Riku?" She asked softly. "I really really _really_ want to go swimming."

"Sure Risa. I'm looking forward to it too."

With that, the group climbed back on the bus, Risa giving one last wistful glance over her shoulder. Maybe Phantom Dark would meet her on the beach tonight . . .

_Author's note 1: Gasp! Could Saehara be a prophet? Probably not - he may just be a nosy brat. But then again . . ._

_Author's not 2: Wow! I should complain more often! Thank you all for your reviews! They brightened up my day considerably!!! Please remember to review for this chapter as well. Also, the shoe thing . . . totally happened to me. Sucked. Unfortunately, there was no bespectacled blue haired Adonis there to give me a towel, just a very angry band teacher . . . _


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

_Okay, so I'm sitting here before class, trying to get as much written as I can before the teacher shows up. Jeez, I love my laptop! I would be doing this on paper if I didn't have it, and it would take twice as long!_

_As much as I said I didn't want to go back, I'm looking forward to this class: Comp II! Yay!_

Disclaimer: I still no own DN Angel.

No matter who the audience was, Risa Harada loved to be the center of attention. Whether it was recounting one of her many -often exaggerated - stories about Dark to her sister, to reading aloud in class, Risa enjoyed everyone's focus to be solely on her. So when Saehara suggested that she and Hiwatari were dating, she discovered the perfect opportunity to get attention.

"Oh, don't worry, we're not going out." Risa informed Hiwatari's fangirls at a picnic in a lush green park. She laughed at the idea, and the four girls sighed with relief.

"Well then you're just plain lucky to get to spend this much time with him. It must be amazing!" One girl sighed dreamily. Risa rolled her eyes.

"Not really. I mean, I would've thought so, if Hiwatari-kun weren't . . . well . . . you know."

"Know what?" One of the girls asked, taking the bait. Risa smiled. Ah yes . . . gossip hunger had set in.

"Why . . ." She paused dramatically. "Hiwatari-kun is gay."

"What?! No way!" Every girl gasped in horror.

"Yeah, he told me himself."

"You're lying. There's no way. That would be such a waste!"

"Isn't it though?" Risa shrugged. "But I guess it can't be helped. I mean, haven't you seen the way he looks at Daisuke Niwa? It's love. He's totally jealous of Riku."

"Ooooh!" The girls crooned in unison at this scandalous bit of information.

"Mmmhmm." Risa put her hands on her hips, proud of herself for producing such a juicy piece of gossip. "So now you know why he sent all those love notes back, and why he said -"

"I don't have time for girls!" A dark haired girl said. They began to murmur amongst themselves.

"Now, he's a little self conscious about it, so don't let him know that you know. After all, the guy that he's in love with is dating someone else - a _girl _for that matter."

"Oh, poor Hiwatari-kun!" One girl cried. Risa smiled as they began to gossip together about all the sure signs they had missed.

"Well, catch you guys later. I have to go find my sister now."

"Okay, bye Harada-san. Thanks for clearing everything up for us!"

Risa turned around and gave them a thumbs up, not feeling the least bit guilty about outing Hiwatari. Why should she? He always acted strangely - it was bound to get out anyway! Nope, not guilty a all.

She smiled and waved at her sister and Daisuke. They were stretched out on a picnic blank provided by one of the parents who had volunteered to come on the trip. Hiwatari was lying on a nearby blanket, reading of course. Risa frowned slightly, but then smiled as she was offered a blanket to sit on. "Thank you." She murmured to the parent volunteer and joined them, picking up a bagged lunch on the way.

"Hey guys!" She spread out the blanket and sat down. "Well don't you two look all nice and cozy?"

Riku and Diasuke both blushed and looked at each other sheepishly. Risa grinned, always glad to cause them a little embarrassment. "What are you reading Hiwatari-kun?" She asked. He held the book up briefly, then returned to his reading. "_Still_? Even after I told you what happened?"

"I told you it's for a school project." he said in his usual monotonous voice. "I have to know the details."

"Oh." Risa said, then caught her sister giving her an evil look. "What?!"

"You told him what happens?" Her tone was exasperated. Risa sweat-dropped, smiling.

"Well, you know me!" She said with a laugh. Riku rolled her eyes. "Hey, how much longer do we have anyway? I'm ready to hit the beach!"

"Um . . ." Daisuke pulled out his itinerary again and looked. "Let's see . . . after the picnic we're supposed to . . . go to the mall." He groaned as a spark lit up Risa's eye. He glanced at Riku. "Is this going to be bad?"

"Oh yeah. Risa_ loves _to shop. We'll be dragged all over."

"Eheheh . . ." This time, Daisuke sweat-dropped as Risa began naming off all the people she needed to buy souvenirs for.

"Let's see . . . Mom, Dad, Aimi, Masuyo, Hiro K, Hiro T, Rei, Mr. and Mrs. Niwa -"

"Hey! Why are you buying my parents something?"

"Because they didn't get to come silly! I couldn't just leave them out . . . let's see, where was I? Oh yes, Grandpa Niwa, Wiz, Miki, Ryo . . . um . . . oh yeah! Hideki, Mami, Rin . . ."

Daisuke looked at Riku, his mouth open.

"Don't think she's being generous." Riku muttered. "She just loves to shop.

"Taiki, Yuuko, Airi, . . . and Hina . . . I think I might be forgetting someone." She looked up. "Oh . . . I lost count. Riku, how many was that?"

"What? How should I know?! I wasn't listening!"

"Hmm . . . well . . . " Risa turned away from her sister and laid down on her back, deciding to ignore her annoyance with her. "Ah! It's so beautiful here! The sun . . . the sand . . . the . . ." She blinked and looked up in horror as a drop of water landed on her forehead. "R-rain? But it was fine just a minute ago!"

"Wow, where did those clouds come from?" Diasuke asked, then was hit in the face boy a raindrop.

"Oh! Did I forget to mention? It rains _every day _in Waikiki, at exactly the same time!" The bus driver shouted as people ran around, trying to get the mess cleaned up before the downpour started.

"The blankets! Don't forget about the blankets!" Their teacher shouted, carrying a pile of trash to the trashcan. Risa grabbed her blanket and lunch and made a mad dash for the bus, the raindrops hitting her at an ever increasing frequency. She was one of the few students who made it to the safety of the bus in time - she laughed at Riku and Daisuke as they passed her, completely drenched by the rainstorm.

Hiwatari followed them in, shaking off his wet book. His damp hair clung to his forehead, making Risa giggle. "Hiwatari-kun! You're wet" He gave her a look that said _"I was _quite_ aware of that"_ and sighed. "Here." She offered him her towel.

"No thank you, Harada-san." He murmured. She rolled her eyes.

"Hiwatari-kun, it's not charity. You're my seating partner - I don't want you to get me wet, that's all."

"I'm not that wet."

"I don't care! Just take the towel. Please."

He didn't say anything, but accepted the towel, only to lay it across his lap and lean back with his eyes closed. Risa sighed and rolled her eyes dramatically, though of course he couldn't see it. Why was she offering to help him anyway? Oh yeah . . . because he would get her wet. That was all. And she _didn't_ feel bad about starting a rumor about him! A sharp crack made her sit up a little straighter. Saehara was standing in the aisle, and had just snapped another boy with his wet shirt.

"Saehara! Put your shirt back on!" Riku yelled

"Yeah! No one wants to see that!" Another person, a guy this time, called.. Risa quickly shut her eyes, the image of Saehara shirtless burned into her mind. Gross . . . gross . . . gross . . . gross gross gross . . . grossgrossgrossgrossgrossgrossgross!

"Aw, come on! It's Hawaii! You're going to see it on the beach anyway!"

Everyone groaned, but the teacher, who was completely drenched from head to foot, stepped onto the bus at this time and gave Saehara a stern reprimanding. Chastised, Saehara sat back down and the bus began moving. Risa laid her head against the window and stared out at the pelting rain.

"Oh, Risa cheer up." Riku leaned over the seat and smiled at her. "Don't worry, we'll be able to go to the beach after the rain clears up. The bus driver says it usually only lasts about thirty minutes."

"It's not that." She grumbled, closing her eyes. "I just don't like being on the street in the rain."

"Oh, yeah." She said, then smiled gently. "Don't worry, Risa. The rain doesn't cause accidents. Careless drivers do."

"I know . . . but the rain can be a major contribution to it." She said. Riku sighed in defeat and leaned back next to Daisuke.

------------------------

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the hotel. Students began grumbling and asking what was going on, but their teacher quieted them down before explaining.

"It's only our first day here, and it's already . . ." he looked at his watch. "Four-thirty. I want you to have time in the afternoons to do whatever you want to do . . . well . . . maybe not _whatever_ you want to do . . ." He gave Saehara a stern look. "But I want you to be able to enjoy Hawaii on your own time. So . . . I thought that instead of going to the mall today, we could all go on Friday before the luau. Now, you can still go today as you wish, but some of you might want to visit other places, such as the beach, or some of the ABC stores. How many are there again?" He asked, turning to the driver.

"Well, in Waikiki there are 36. There's one on every corner of every block. That's where we got the name: ABC . . . All Blocks Covered."

"Ah, yes. 36. Well, they shouldn't be hard to find. And, if you want, you can still go to the mall. You might just want to wait until the rain clears up . . . is that alright with everyone?"

There was an enthusiastic cheer as everyone filed off of the bus in disorder. Some people chose to go to the mall, others decided to check out the ABC stores. Risa, of course, picked the beach, but only after the rain stopped. She and her sister went into her room.

"Do you need in the bathroom anytime soon, Riku?" She asked.

"Uh . . . no."

"Okay, I'm going to take a shower then."

"Wait . . . you're going to take a shower . . . before you go to the beach?"

"Yes." She said with a hint of irritation in her voice. "Is there something wrong with that? I feel all grimy from the salt water."

"Well, you're just going to get back in it."

"I don't care." She huffed, getting annoyed at her sister. If she wanted to take a shower, she would take a shower!

"Risa, sometimes you make no sense at all."

"Don't be mean, Riku!" She said, closing the bathroom door. Riku rolled her eyes at her sister's tantrum.

"Well fine! If that's how you're going to act, you can go to the beach by yourself! I'm going to go find Daisuke."

"Fine by me!" Risa shouted, turning on the water. She didn't need her sister anyway. She could take care of herself!

She stepped into the hot shower, knowing she was being irrationally angry with Riku, but she didn't really care. She was really beginning to get on her nerves . . . already. Risa sighed.

She intended to make this shower last , hoping that by the time she was finished the rain would be done and she could go ahead and leave. She washed her hair twice before using conditioner and used her sweetest smelling soap. Yes, she brought more than one type of soap. Was that so weird? Riku thought so, especially after their fight to get through customs with all those bottles. Sheesh . . . like a fourteen-year-old was going to try to sneak nitroglycerin on an airplane . . .

When she finally stepped from the shower, she felt absolutely and positively squeaky clean. Showers always made her feel better. She sighed with contentment and tried to think of someone who would want to go to the beach with her. She had never really intended to go by herse-

She gasped in horror at the bright red stain on the hotel's towel. No. No way. Not now, _not _while she was in Hawaii! She could _not _have started her period already! It was two weeks early! _Two weeks!_ Had she miscounted? No, because she had checked, double checked, and triple checked, and even though she was bad at math she would _ never_miscalculate on something as important as this!

"Oh . . . no!" She cried. She hadn't brought anything! Wait! Maybe Riku! Putting on her dirty clothes - she couldn't put on her bikini yet - and a wad of toilet paper so as not to soil her underclothes, she ran into the main bedroom and flung open her sister's suitcase. Riku usually started a week after her, but she was the responsible twin.

Risa rummaged through her suitcase, flinging Riku's clothes aside with abandon. Oh please . . . please please please! She dug deeper, pulling out the few toiletries Riku had brought. Jeez . . . there was hardly any makeup . . .

She gasped and pulled a pad from the bottom of the suitcase. There _was _a God after all! True, it wasn't a tampon, which was what she really needed, but at least now she could go to the store and buy a box.

"I should probably thank Riku later . . ." She said to herself, but her raging girl hormones wouldn't let her even consider it. After she had changed into another outfit, she grabbed a few dollars and shoved them in her pocket. Time to explore Hawaii . . . alone . . . by herself . . .

Oh boy.

_Wow! This was a much longer chapter than usual . . . I think . . . But you'll be glad to know that the story actually begins to progress from here . . . as in . . . we're actually moving along with the plot! Yay! Hope you enjoy it, and I'll have seven up as soon as possible. Remember, please review. I'll be sad if you don't. Also, sorry if some of the words that are italicized run together with words that aren't. It keeps doing that for some reason. I've tried to correct it in this document, but if I missed something, sorry. Bad Galinda01. _

_Random note: My classes are AMAZING! _


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

_Whoo! College! Well, I must say it's great to be back. I don't like the "getting up early" part, but other than that it's pretty okay. _

_Author's note: I'm waiting outside of my class right now, so I'm not really listening to music. : (_

Disclaimer: I still no own . . . you know what? I'm getting sick of saying this. If you don't know by now that I don't own DN Angel, then you haven't been reading my disclaimers. Shame on you.

She almost made it out of the building without incident. There were so many students around that no one paid attention to little miss Risa Harada, and for the first time in her life she was thankful for that. She would've hated to have to explain her current situation to someone - she had always been a terrible liar, and wouldn't ended up telling them anyway.

She was almost out the double doors. After that, all she had to do was go down the street and around the corner and there would be an ABC store where she could buy some . . . er . . . supplies. After that, the could come back, change into her swimsuit and _hit the beach_! Yeah!

"Harada-san?" Oh no. Please, anything but this. "Where are you going?" She whirled around and, just as she had thought, there was Satoshi Hiwatari, staring at her with those shrewd blue eyes. The hair on the back of her neck stood up. This was the _last_ person she wanted to run into right now.

"Oh . . . I was just on my way to the store. What about you? What are you doing here?"

"I was visiting some of the stores in the hotel . . . Isn't anyone going with you?"

"No. I can take care of myself, Hiwatari-kun." She replied.

He sighed. "Didn't you read the itinerary? No one is supposed to go anywhere unless another person is with them. It's dangerous."

"I can take care of myself." She repeated with more emphasis..

"Well, I can't let you go alone." He said simply, removing his glasses and cleaning them on his shirt.

"Oh? And what are you going to do?" He ignored her and put his glasses back on. She sighed. "I'm just going down the street. I'll be fine, really."

"I'm sorry, but I _can't_ let you do that."

"Why not?"

"It's not safe for a lady to walk the streets alone, even in the daylight."

"Hmph . . ." _He makes me sound like a prostitute . . . wait . . . did he just call me a lady? _"So what are you going to do? I'm leaving no matter what you say."

"I guess I'll just have to come with you."

"No! You can't!" Terror filled her at the thought. Of all the people . . . of _all the people_! She'd rather _Saehara_ went with her. Well, that was a little over the top . . . but still! "Hiwatari-kun, you_can't_."

"I have to. You don't realize how dangerous this place can be if your alone."

"Please. It's_Hawaii_.. How often do you hear about bad things happening to people in Hawaii? It's a tropical paradise!"

"There are psychopaths everywhere." He countered.

"You're not coming with me." She turned to leave, but he just followed her. She tried to ignore him, hoping he would give up and go back to the hotel, but half way down the block he was still behind her. "Look," She turned around. "Any other time, I would be okay with it. But you _can not_ come with me."

" . . . Why not?"

"You just can't."

"Is it really that bad?" He was still following her. "I respect your privacy, Harada-san, but I can't let you wander the streets of Waikiki by yours-"

"I'm buying tampons." She said, whirling around to face him. "Happy now?"

He did a good job hiding his embarrassment, Risa thought. He looked shocked only for a second before his face returned to it's natural composed state. She almost missed the faint pink blush that spread across his face as he turned his head away and cleared his throat.

"W-well. Um . . . in that case I'll . . . I'll come with you, but you can . . . you know . . . have your privacy while you . . . shop." He cleared his throat again. Risa felt mortified and grateful at the same time.

"Thank you, Hiwatari-kun." she murmured, turning her back on him.

A horribly awkward silence fell between them

------------------------

Thankfully, Hiwatari kept his word and looked at books while she shopped. She would've died right there on the spot if he had seen her make her selection - ultra slims. He even pretended to keep shopping while she paid for it and asked for it double bagged. She tied the first bag so there was no chance of an accidental glimpse of it's contents and carried it by the second - a trick she had taught herself while shopping for girl essentials with Daisuke.

"Ready?" Hiwatari asked as she approached him. She merely nodded and he held the door open for her. Oh . . . how . . . polite. Maybe . . . maybe Hiwatari wasn't so bad after all. After all, he was a good escort . . . a real gentleman . . . and how many of _those _were left in the world? And of course, she knew she was safe with him. It was_Satoshi_ _Hiwatari, _after all.

"So . . . Riku and Daisuke are off doing their little "dating" thing." Risa said with a smile. "And . . . well I wanted to go to the beach . . ."

"Okay." Hiwatari said carefully.

"So . . . would you like to come be my bodyguard again?" She gave him her sweetest smile.

"I guess I don't have any choice." he said, but he didn't look upset. "I'll meet you in the lobby?"

"Yeah." She said with a smile.

------------------------

It was _just_ Hiwatari. Satoshi Hiwatari. Satoshi-kun. Hmm . . . she liked the way that sounded . . . no! _Hiwatari-kun_! It was only Hiwatari-kun, so it really wasn't a big deal that she was going out with him. Out . . . on something that resembled a date. Nope, not a big deal at all.

Hmm . . . which swimsuit to wear? She shouldn't really care . . . but in case . . . . in case Dark showed up, she wanted to look her best . . . yes. It wasn't Hiwatari. She just wanted to look nice for Dark. She selected her two piece and put it on, then examined herself in the mirror. Perfect. She put on a T-shirt and a short, pink skirt over the suit, grabbed a towel, and headed downstairs.

He was waiting for her in the lobby, just like he had said. She gasped angrily. "I thought you said you were coming to the beach with me!"

"I am."

"Then why are you still wearing that?!" She said, indicating his regular attire. He was wearing long pants and a T-shirt.

"I said I would go with you. I never said I would swim."

"What? But what fun is the beach if you don't swim?"

"I'm not going to have fun. I'm going because you are, and I can't let you go by yourself. My conscience won't let me."

"So basically you're just babysitting me." Ooh! And to think she had _almost_ stopped disliking him!

"No, I'm not babysitting you. I'm protecting you from some of the perverts out there who might try to hurt you."

" . . . Oh."_Well . . . when you put it like that . . . _"Okay then. Are you ready?"

He nodded. On their way out, she kept a sharp eye out for one of his fan girls . . . just in case they got the wrong idea. Sure, she had convinced them he was gay, but it still might look a little suspicious if they were caught leaving the hotel together. Hiwatari didn't seem to notice anything. Of course. For a smart guy, he could be really oblivious at times.

"I think it's this way." Hiwatari said, indicating that they go left.

"No, I remember there was a beach this way that I wanted to check out." She started to go right.

"Are you sure? Because the itinerary-"

"Hiwatari-kun, I saw the beach with my own eyes. It's just a little bit further than the other one. Besides, _everyone_ is going to the beach that's on the itinerary."

"Oh." He said, then got a strange look on his face. "_Oh._" He cleared his throat. "Harada-san, I really don't have time for this. If all you wanted was to be alone with me, I really must be going."

"What? Why you arrogant jerk!" She shouted. He looked shocked . . . well, shocked by Satoshi Hiwatari standards.

"Excuse me?"

"You think that I . . . that I would . . . and you!" She took a deep breath. "You actually think I would be interested in _you_?!" At this, she gave a humorless laugh and turned on her heel.

"Where are you going?"

"_I'm _going to the beach. The beach I wanted to go to. And I'm going _alone_." She started to march off, but he caught her arm and stopped her. She turned around and glared up at him. Wow . . . he was tall . . .

"I apologize if I embarrassed you." He said softly. Oh. My. God. Did Satoshi Hiwatari just apologize to her? Oh. My. _God_. "I was mistaken. But all the same, I'm not going to allow you to go to the beach by yourself."

"Well . . . do you promise not to insult me?" She asked, looking up at him. He paused.

"I can try." He didn't smile, but there was a touch of humor in his voice.

------------------------

"Aha! I was right!" Risa giggled and took her shoes off, making sure they were far away from the ocean. "See? Isn't this beautiful? Look at that sunset!"

"Mmm." Hiwatari said, then mumbled something under his breath.

"What?"

"I was just thinking. This would make an excellent painting."

"Oh . . ." She said, looking closely at him. She knew Hiwatari was a painter, but she had never seen him paint. She had never noticed the glazed look that came over his usually calculating gaze as he planned out a painting.

"Yes . . . I'll have to remember this." He blinked and looked at her. "Well, we're here."

"Yeah . . . Hiwatari, come swim with me! It'll be fun!"

"I . . . don't think that's a good idea. In case you haven't noticed, I don't swim."

"Ha! That's a lie! You saved Daisuke's life! I was there when you gave him mouth to mouth!"

"I know. I said I_don't_ swim. I didn't say I _can't_."

" . . . Oh . . . but it's fun."

"Sorry, but . . . no."

"Why?"

"Other than the fact that I'm not wearing the proper clothes, my doctors prefer that I don't over exert myself." For the briefest second, Risa thought she saw something resembling embarrassment flash across his face, but it disappeared as quickly as it had come.

"Oh . . . so . . . that's why you're exempt from swimming in class." She murmured. "And why you don't take gym . . ."

"Yes."

"Oh . . . okay then." She sighed, trying to think of something to say.

"I don't think you should swim either." He said suddenly.

"What? Why?"

"This beach is completely deserted." He noted, looking around. "There must be a reason."

"Because everyone else wanted to go to the other beach." She said over her shoulder. She was already making her way to the water.

"I really don't think it's a good idea, Harada-san." He walked forward and grabbed her wrist. "It seems too risky."

"Hiwatari-kun," She said sweetly. "Thank you for your concern, but I am an excellent swimmer. I can take care of myself. Besides, wouldn't the beach be fenced off if there was something dangerous here?"

"Not necessarily." He said, but he let go of her hand. "Just . . . be careful."

"I will." She grinned and took of into the ocean. Hiwatari sighed and began walking down the beach toward the pier. It was basically a huge dock made of black stone. He would definitely need to include it in his painting. Hawaii really was beautiful . . . what a sunset. . . . it was really peaceful.

He took a deep breath, then squinted. Something at the end of the dock caught his attention. It was barely discernable, as he was staring in the direction of the setting sun. Curious, he went to see what it was. As he got closer he realized it was a sign that had been knocked down. His pace quickened to a run, and when he got to the end of the pier he picked up the broken sign. His breath caught when he read the warning.

_Jellyfish_.

"Harada-san!" He cried, dropping the sign. "Harada-san! Get out of there! Hara-" His shouts were cut off by Risa's scream.

_Well, hope you liked it! If you review, I'll post chapter 8 soon._


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

_Well, I'm sitting in the library at school, and I feel _so_ smart because I brought a pair of headphones. Another reason I love my laptop: it has all my favorite CDs are in it's library, so I don't even have to carry them around I can just select a CD from it's memory and viola! As long as I'm the only one who can hear it, I can listen to whatever I want! The current CD of choice? Phantom of the Opera - the _original_ cast. ; )_

Disclaimer: You know the drill.

His glasses were off in a flash. Without hesitation Hiwatrari dove off of the pier into the churning black water. He broke surface as quickly as possible to avoid getting hit in the face by a one of the jellyfish. The waves were fighting against him, and his clothing was weighing him down. He struggled toward the direction he thought she might be, when suddenly her cries ceased. Oh, shit.

He swam harder, fighting against the urge to panic. "Harada-san!" He screamed. "Harada-san! Where are you?!" He felt something brush up against his leg, but it couldn't reach him through his clothing. He tried again. "Risa! Answer me!"

Finally, he saw where she was struggling to swim. He fought his way against the waves and numerous jellyfish toward her. She went under again before he could reach her, but now he knew her location. At one point, he felt a sharp sting on his hand, but it must have been a baby, because the pain he felt was nothing compared to what she must have been experiencing.

------------------------

The pain was unlike any she had before experienced. It was surreal, what she was feeling. She didn't even know pain like this could exist. She was paralyzed by the intensity of the stings. They shut down her mind and body, blocking out everything except the icy fire spreading through her body.

And yet, even through all the pain and all her screaming, her mind was perfectly clear. Or at least, clear enough for her to realize that she was drowning. And somewhere in the back of her mind, a small part of her thought "Oh shit. Riku's going to be so upset."

That was the last thing that came to mind before a pair of strong arms wrapped around her torso and pulled her to the surface. She gasped for air, only to waste it on a scream, for she had been stung on her stomach, and Hiwatari was tugging her to shore by her abdomen. She screamed and screamed. And screamed. Even when he pulled her ashore and laid her down in the sand she kept screaming. She screamed until finally his hand covered her mouth and muffled her shrieks.

"Harada-san." He said sternly. "I need you to stop screaming now." She squealed underneath his hand, sobbing. Couldn't he see how much pain she was in?! "I know it hurts, but I need you to be brave. Can you do that for me?" She shook her head, tears leaking out of her eyes. "Yes, you can." He said, and removed his hand from her mouth. She cried out, but this time words were discernable and her voice wasn't as shrill.

"It hurts!"

"I know. I know it does." He looked down at her, his eyes cold and calculating. "Do you know what happened?" She didn't answer. "You were stung by a jellyfish. That's why there's no one here - this area is infested . . ." he shook his head, disgusted. "You'd think they would have that sign fixed." He sighed, still shaking his head. "Fortunately, it wasn't a box jellyfish."

"How do you know it wasn't?" She asked, crying.

"You would be dead by now." He said. This made her cry even harder. He sighed and leaned over her. "Risa-san." He whispered. She opened her eyes and stared into his deep blue gaze. For a moment, the pain was forgotten. His face was literally centimeters from hers. When he spoke, she could feel his breath against her lips. "You've been stung very badly. I have to get you back to the hotel."

She whimpered as carefully put her shirt and skirt back on her. That was the great thing about Hiwatari, though. He saved her the embarrassment of being in a skimpy red bikini in public. He tried to be as careful as possible when he picked her up, but she still cried in pain. "H-Hiwatari, it hurts!" He didn't bother mentioning that she forgot to add an honorific. At the moment, it didn't seem important.

"I know it does." He adjusted her in his arms so that he was carrying her like he would a child. She leaned her head against his chest and closed her eyes.

"I-I'm sorry, Hiwatari-kun." She murmured, her voice quivering. She sounded so much like a child at that moment. He sighed.

"Don't apologize Harada-san. It's not your fault . . . it's the fault of whoever knocked down that sign. We should sue . . ." She sniffled, and he sighed, wishing he could make her feel better. "We need vodka." He muttered. She looked up at him.

"What?"

"Nothing . . . that was . . . a joke because . . . you know. Vodka can be used to treat . . . never mind." He sighed.

She giggled. "Did you _really _just try to make a joke, Hiwatari-kun?"

"Maybe." He said with a smirk. She giggled again. His fan girls would _die_ to be in her situation right now.

"Ah!" She cried, and he shifted his arms again so he wouldn't touch her stings.

"We have to go in here, first." He murmured.

"Wh-where?" She looked up to see they were entering an ABC store.

"Do you have a place where I could set her? And also, I'm going to need some vinegar and aloe."

"Jellyfish sting?" The saleswoman asked, bringing over a collapsible chair..

"What do you think?" He sat Risa down in the chair. "I'll be right back. Don't move." As if she could. He walked to the counter and paid for the items. He stuck his right arm through the loops on the plastic back and picked Risa back up. "Thank you." He murmured to the saleslady and was out the door in a flash.

"H-Hiwatari-kun . . . I'm not too heavy?" Ah. Leave it to Risa Harada to worry about her weight while in immense pain.

"No, Harada-san. You're not too heavy." _Anyway, I've carried you before . . ._but she didn't know that, of course, and he wasn't about to say it aloud.

In ten minutes the reached the hotel, but the moment Hiwatari walked in carrying Risa there was a blinding flash. It took him a second to get his bearings, but when the spots disappeared he saw Saehara grinning up at him, holding a camera. "Wow! Now _this_ is suspicious! You two are walking in just like newly-weds!"

"Harada-san is hurt." He said, striding past him toward the elevators. As he walked, carrying the injured girl, all eyes followed. Saehara caught up to him.

"Hey! What happened? Was there a shark attack?!"

"Jellyfish." He said, punching the button for the seventh floor.

"_Jellyfish?_" Saehara scoffed. "That's boring! Now a shark attack, that would be- hey!"

But the elevator doors had already closed. "Are you okay?" Hiwatari asked.

"I think so. It just hurts." Her voice was tired. Silence fell between them, but this time there was no awkwardness.

"712, right?' He asked when they finally reached her floor.

"Yeah." She said. Her eyes closed. She was content for a moment, then . . . "Hiwatari-kun . . . what are you doing?" He had placed is knee against the wall and was using his leg and the wall to help support her. She felt his right hand slip into the pocket of her skirt. She gasped and slapped him hard across the face, surprised at how much strength she had, considering. "PERVERT!" She screamed, then braced herself, sure that Hiwatari would drop her.  
He just looked with those icy blue eyes and held up a plastic card he had taken from her pocket. "I needed your room key." He said gently. She gasped and he slid the card in the door, unlocking it. He pushed his way into the room and gently kicked the door shut.

"Which bed is yours?"

"The one by the bathroom." She said. He laid her on the bed opposite to it and began stripping her bed.

"What are you doing?"

"Making sure we don't ruin your sheets." His voices was calm and calculating, and his hands moved methodically, as if this was something he did all the time. He scooped her back up and laid her on the bed, which only had the bottom sheet left.

"Your bed is probably going to smell like vinegar for a while." He murmured. "And before you say anything, I'm sorry about this."

"Sorry about what? Hey!" She gasped as he began unzipping her skirt. "What are you doing?"

"You had another wound on your upper thigh that I need to take care of. If you're embarrassed, remember I've already seen you in your bathing suit."

"I know, but I don't particularly like it that you're undressing me! I can do that much myself!"

"Can you now?" He asked and stepped back. She tried to sit up, but the jellyfish sting on her stomach prevented it. She grunted and cried out in pain, and he crossed his arms. "Now, may I please tend to your wounds before they get worse?"

She glared at him, but permitted him to continue with his work. "And like I said . . . I apologize. I know this is probably highly embarrassing for you."

"Oh, and it isn't for you?!"

He shrugged. "I studied a little bit of medicine in college. I'm certified for this type of thing." She glared at him, but noticed his face did seem tinged with a hint of pink as he slipped her shirt over her head. However, his calculating look returned when he saw the red slashes that had appeared across her stomach.

"Hmm . . . we need to get this cleaned. The venom isn't toxic, but the pain is going to continue if we don't get the stingers out . . . This is going to hurt." He took a deep breath. "A lot." She watched him pour vinegar on one of the hotel's washcloths.

"H-Hiwatari . . . do you know what you're doing?" She asked.

"Yes." He said, then looked at her. "I'm about to begin . . . are you ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be . . ." she murmured, closing her eyes. He sighed and touched the washcloth to her stomach. It stung a little, but it wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be.

"Feel okay?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, I'm about to start scrubbing. Please . . . don't scream." He applied pressure to the rag and ran it across her stomach. She couldn't stop herself - she screamed.

He jumped up and covered her mouth with his hand. His skin tasted like vinegar. "Shhh!"

"That hurt!"

"I said it would! Now calm down."

"Why are you doing this, Hiwatari-kun?" She asked, glaring.

"Because it's the best way to treat a jellyfish sting."

"No I mean, why are you helping me?"

He looked confused for a second. "What do you mean?"

"You hate me! Why would you bother helping me when I've been nothing but a nuisance to you."

" . . . Harada-san . . . I don't hate you." he said softly.

"You . . . don't?"

"No. Where did you get an idea like that?" He looked genuinely confused.

"Well, you're always so cold toward me, and I know I'm really annoying and not very smart."

"That's . . . not true, Harada-san. You can be very intelligent when you want to be." He looked uncomfortable. "And . . . yes, you can be very . . . _very _annoying at times, but that doesn't make me hate you. I'm cold toward you because that's the way I treat everyone." She realized this was true and smiled slightly. "Now, may I please continue?"

" . . . Yes, Hiwatari-kun." She said softly. When he began cleaning again, she did her best not to scream. She cried and covered her face with a pillow, but she didn't scream. Hiwatari's work was finished with ten minutes. It was the longest ten minutes of her life.

"Okay . . ." He sighed, trying to think of a way to put this. "There is another sting on your . . . inner thigh." He said. His voice seemed somewhat edgy.

"Okay." Risa didn't really understand what he was trying to say. "Yeah, my leg was hurting."

"It's . . . very high up . . . on your inner thigh."

"What?" She strained to sit up and gasped, seeing the red stripe . It was half way between her knee and her . . . er . . . self. Now she understood why he looked so uncomfortable.

"Do you know when your sister will be back?"

"No . . . knowing her it will be a while."

" . . . I could . . . go get someone else . . . to take care of this . . . if you're uncomfortable with me-"

"No!" She cried. "Please don't leave!" She was afraid if he left, he wouldn't come back, and he had saved her life. At the moment he was the only person she wanted to be around. "Please, you . . . you saved me. You know more about health than our own nurse does!"

"I wouldn't go that far."

"I would!" She said. "Please! I . . . I trust you . . . and I know you wouldn't do this . . . if you didn't have to."

He sighed and put a hand to his forehead. "Okay. Okay I need you to . . ." Oh . . . this was going to sound awful. "Spread your . . . legs. Don't give me that look! You know what I mean!" She did as she was told, and he dutifully scrubbed the area she had been stung. She noticed that he wasn't blushing - he had turned off all emotion and was looking at this as simply a job to do.

Hiwatari . . . would make a good doctor . . . she noted. He had everything it required: Patience, dexterity, a strong stomach, and the ability to turn off all feeling in order to get the job done . . .

Of course, she was thinking this as he scrubbed the sting on her leg, so it was in the back of her mind. There were more important thoughts swirling around in her head, like "OW! THAT HURTS!" And "This is so embarrassing!"

"Now, for the aloe." He said, stepping away from her. "This will help with the pain." He squeezed a small amount of green gel onto his hand and smoothed it over her abdomen. She gasped at the contact. Satoshi Hiwatari was touching her stomach!

"Is something wrong?"

"N-no. It's just . . . cold." She said quickly. He nodded and continued his work, spreading the gel until it covered ever part of the wound. And it did help. She was still in pain, but the aloe helped immensely. She closed her eyes, content, but when he proceeded to move to her leg she gasped and moved away from him

"I apologize." He said, proper as usual. "Is this making you uncomfortable?"

"No, no it's okay. Just . . . warn me next time." She said, settling back into her spot. He nodded and squeezed more gel into his hand.

"Don't worry, it will be over soon." He murmured. His hand touched her inner thigh, and she felt an involuntary shiver run down her spine. He glanced up at her, but didn't say anything. It was embarrassing enough for the both of them.

"What is going on?!" Both their heads turned as Riku entered the room. Neither of them moved for a moment, then Hiwatari quickly drew his hand away from her thigh. His face was impassive. "H-He . . . you-you-you . . .!" She spluttered, pointing at Hiwatari. "Get away from my sister!"

"No, Riku! It's nothing like that!" Risa said as Hiwatari stood.

"Oh _really_?!" She stared at her sister in disbelief. "Risa, how _could_ you?!"

"Harada-san, I was merely -"

"You stay out of this, pervert!" Riku shouted. Ouch. That was the second time he'd been called a pervert in the past thirty minutes.

"Riku, he saved my life!" Risa said, trying to sit up. She groaned and fell back. Hiwatari quickly strode back to her side.

"She was stung by a jellyfish." He said calmly. "Possibly more than one. There was a warning sign, but it had been knocked down."

"Oh, Risa!" Riku said, instantly abashed. "I'm so sorry! If I had been there . . ."

"Well, I'm just lucky Hiwatari-kun was with me . . ." She looked meaningfully at her sister. "I think you owe him an apology."

"Oh . . . right . . . I'm sorry, Hiwatari-kun. It's just that . . . well . . . when I walked in and saw you . . . hey, what were you doing, exactly?"

He nodded for her to join him next to Risa and pointed out the wounds on her body. "She's been stung here and here. Her stomach got the worst of it, but as you can see she's been stung on her leg as well. I was doctoring her wounds when you entered."

"Wow, Hiwatari-kun. You're just full of surprises, aren't you?" She put her hands on her hips and smiled at him. He merely shrugged. Risa gave her sister a look, and Riku cleared her throat. "Well, um . . . we're out of ice. I'm just gonna . . . you know . . . go get some more." She said. Her feeble excuse to get out of the room fooled no one, but they let her go.

"Well, I should be getting to my room. I'm really not supposed to be here."

"Okay . . ." She said softly. He stood to leave, and her heart started drumming. He was at the door before she finally worked up her courage. "H-Hiwatari-kun?"

"Yes?" He paused, looking back at her. Even from across the room she could see how blue his eyes were. She swallowed.

"Um . . . well . . . you know tomorrow is our free day . . . so we can do whatever we want." He merely nodded, and she took a deep breath. "Riku and Daisuke are going to want to spend all day together. I was wondering . . . would you like to go somewhere with me? You know . . . just the two of us?"

He was silent for a moment, then he smiled. Yes, smiled. Satoshi Hiwatari _smiled_ at her. It was small, barely discernable, but it was there, and it was still there as he replied "I would . . . like that very much . . . Risa-san."

------------------------

Hiwatari's smile faded as soon as he exited her room, but the warm feeling in his chest remained. Tomorrow, he was spending the day with Risa Harada. Just a few hours ago, that thought would've made him shudder, but after spending the first day of their trip with her _and_ saving her life, he found himself growing fond of the girl. He was almost fond enough to call her . . . a friend.

Strange, wasn't it, how quickly your opinion can change of someone? He pondered this on the elevator ride to his floor, and on the walk to his room. She hadn't changed at all . . . she was still annoying as hell . . . but for some reason he didn't mind.

He entered the room and found Daisuke sitting on the couch. Immediately, he knew something was wrong. His usual smile was missing, and his eyes looked bleak. He was wringing his hands nervously.

"Daisuke?" He asked, approaching him. "Daisuke, what's the matter"

"Eh . . . S-Satoshi?" He swallowed, not meeting his eyes. "Um . . . I think . . . I think we need to talk . . ."

_------------------------------------- _

_My chapters just keep getting longer and longer. I don't know if that's good or bad . . . _

_Okay, guess what? Monday was me and David (my boyfriend)'s one year anniversary! He's attending college in Florida, and today I got a package in the mail from him. Inside was a rose with a black ribbon tied around it. Ooh! Phantom of the Opera! Ah . . . romantic . . . sorry, I just HAD to brag! _

_Anyway, review and I'll update!!! _


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

_Whoo! I just got back from an amazing DN Angel Marathon at Abby's house! Whoooooo! It was probably the best marathon ever!!!!! We squealed every time Hiwatari came on:D _

Disclaimer: Nope, don't own it.

Risa stepped from the shower, feeling refreshed. Her stomach did an excited flip as she thought about what she and Hiwatari . . . what she and _Satoshi_ would be doing that day. She could call him Satoshi now . . . right? He _had _called her Risa, after all. That definitely meant something.

She giggled and ran a brush through her hair. Satoshi . . . _Satoshi_ . . . it really was a nice name . . . Satoshi Hiwatari . . . Risa Hiwatari . . . well that sounded weird. Risa Hikari . . . her breath caught, and she blushed crimson. Why was she even _thinking_ that? Mrs. Risa Hikari. . . . no! Ignore the fact that it had a nice ring to it! This was Satoshi Hiwatari! The glasses wearing, stuck up snob!

So . . . why did her heart beat faster every time she thought about him? No no no! She could NOT be falling for Satoshi Hiwatari! There must be an explanation! Maybe it was the heat. Or the romantic atmosphere. They were in Hawaii after all. Whatever it was, it would pass, because her heart belonged only to Dark, right? Right!

She splashed water in her face. How could this be happening? After only one day?! She knew she was a flirt, but she wasn't so bad as to fall for a guy she used to despise after only _one day_!

"Risa! Are you almost done in there?! I need to take a shower!"

"Um . . . just let me get dressed!" She said, picking up her outfit. Why had she chosen _this_ to wear? A white tank and light pink skirt? It was one of her cutest outfits . . . something she had been planning to wear for Dark if he showed up. She had even brought a flower to wear in her hair instead of her usual ribbon . . .

She swallowed. It wasn't like they were going on a date or anything. So there was no reason to look nice. She could change into something more casual . . . something that wouldn't hint that she thought that there was . . . _something_ between them. She could . . . but she didn't want to.

"Bathroom's all yours" She said, opening the door and tucking the flower behind her ear.

"Well! Where are you going all dressed up?"

"I'm not dressed up. I always wear stuff like this."

"Maybe, but you _don't_ always go out with flowers in your hair." She grinned. "Who are you meeting?"

"No one! I'm just . . . you know . . . going out with a couple of friends . . ."

"Friends . . . right." Riku smiled knowingly. "Who's the guy?"

"I _don't_ know what you're talking about." Risa said, brushing past her sister. Riku's smile turned mischievous.

"I already know who it is. I just want you to admit it."

"How do you know?!" She whirled around. "Satoshi-kun didn't tell you?!"

"No!" Riku laughed. "You just did!" Then she gasped. "H-Hiwatari-kun?! No _way_! I thought he was the last person in the world you would ever go out with!"

"We're not going out! We're just . . . you know . . . _hanging_ out."

"Risa, I know you better than anyone." Riku said, a gentle smile replacing her malicious one. "I can tell when you like a guy, and let me tell you, you like Hiwatari-kun . . . a lot."

"How do you know?" Risa asked, indignant.

"Well, first of all, you called him by his first name."

"No I didn-" Oh yeah . . . "Well . . . that doesn't prove anything. He's my friend, that's all."

"Mmmhmm . . . and the fact that you blush every time I say his name doesn't prove anything either."

"It's because you're embarrassing me!"

"Risa." Riku put her hands on her sister's shoulders. "It's okay. I'm not going o make fun of you. It's better him than Dark. And you like him more than you liked Dark, don't you?"

"No! Never! What could possibly make you think something like that?"

"Because . . . you're practically glowing right now. It's great to see you so happy about a guy, especially one that won't try anything with you."

"Yes, Satoshi-kun is too polite to do anything." She said with a soft smile. Riku nodded.

"Well, you mustn't keep your beloved waiting."

"Yeah . . . wait!" She blushed. "No! It's not like that! It's not like you and Niwa!"

"Sure it isn't." Riku laughed and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. Risa sighed, grabbed her bag, and left.

-----------------------

She found Satoshi standing by the fountain in the lobby. It was a beautiful picture - drop dead gorgeous Satoshi Hiwatari, staring into a fountain filled with beautiful, glistening koi. She noticed with a start that he wasn't wearing his glasses, then realized he hadn't been wearing them when he left her room, either. In fact . . . he hadn't been wearing them when he saved her life! Oh . . . he must've left them at the pier . . . well it was a good thing he didn't need them!

In his hand was a cup of coffee. He took a sip, his eyes never leaving the fountain. He seemed to be deep in thought . . . God . . . he looked good. Even she had to admit it. Suddenly she realized why he had a fan club. The hair, the eyes, the flawless skin, accompanied with the aloofness and intelligence made Satoshi Hiwatari a very desirable guy.

"Satoshi-kun!" She called, smiling broadly. He looked up at her and she stopped dead in her tracks. His eyes were cold and distant.

"It's _Hiwatari_, if you don't mind." He said spitefully. She stared at him, her mouth open slightly.

"What . . . what are you talking about? Why are you looking at me like that, Sato- Hiwatari-kun?" Her heart plummeted. His eyes raked over her, taking in her outfit and then focusing on her face.

"I don't get you, Risa Harada." He said, his voice emotionless. "First you tell everyone that I'm gay, then you act like we're _dating_."

"When did I -" She gasped and stared at him in horror. "Oh . . . Oh, Hiwatari-kun . . . I didn't . . . I didn't mean . . ."

"Oh, you didn't mean to? Is that what you were going to say? You didn't _mean_ to tell those girls I was gay, a rumor that is, by the way,_ completely _untrue!"

"Really?"

"Yeah! Really!" He clenched his hands into fists and looked away from her, his face a mixture of pain and rage. "Daisuke . . . he couldn't even _look_ at me last night."

"N-Niwa wouldn't judge you if you were gay, Hiwatari-kun. He isn't like that . . ."

He shook his head. "I know." He looked up at her suddenly. "But _apparently, _one of the girls from that god-awful fan club, got the idea that I was in love with Diasuke. _And_ she thought she would do me a favor by telling him. Apparently she thought she could convince him to dump your sister . . . for me."

"Hiwatari . . . I didn't intend for this to happen . . . I just thought . . . well . .. it was before . . . before we were friends . . ."

"Trust me, Harada-san, we are _not_ friends. We will never _be_ friends."

She felt tears welling up in her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Hiwatari-kun."

He shook his head ruefully. "It took me an hour to explain to Daisuke that I felt no romantic feelings toward him, and even afterward, even after he agreed with me, I could still see it in his eyes . . . the doubt . . . the lingering questions that left an awkwardness between us. I lost my best friend because of you. I lost my _only_ friend because of you."

"Hiwatari-kun, I'm sure . . . I'm sure it's not as bad as you think it is."

"Oh, trust me . . . it's bad." He sighed. "I just don't . . . I don't _understand_. I don't understand how you could do something like that."

"I didn't mean it. I honestly didn't. If I could take it back, I would!"

"I just want you to know that no matter how much I disliked you, I would never . . ._never_ stoop so low as to spread a rumor about you."

"Hiwatari-kun it . . . it had nothing to do with you. It was all about me."

"Figures." He muttered. "It always has to be about you, doesn't it, Harada-san?"

"No . . . No, Hiwatari-kun, please don't be like this . . ." but he had already turned his back on her and was walking off. She just stared at him.

"By the way . . ." He said, looking back at her over his shoulder. His voice was soft, but she could hear every word he was saying. "I lied to you last night. I _do _hate you, Risa Harada."

"You don't mean that! You . . . you don't!"

He didn't say anything else. He didn't have to - she could see it in his eyes. Those alarmingly blue eyes, usually calculating, were full of pure, untainted _loathing_. The look he gave her sent chills down her spine. He turned away again. She wanted to run to him, but the shock of his disgust with her kept her rooted to the spot. She watched him walk away, his back to her, until he disappeared amid the crowded lobby. Only then was she able to move again.

------------------------

Back in the room, Riku took one look at Risa's face and balled her fists. "I'll kill him. What did he do? I'll kill him."

"He didn't do anything. Oh, Riku! It's all my fault!' She cried, throwing herself at her sister. Sobbing in Riku's arms, she told her older twin sister the entire story. "And now . . ." she concluded, still crying bitterly. "And now he hates me! And there's nothing I can do about it! I never meant to hurt him! I was just being stupid! I was just . . . I was just looking for attention . . . I didn't know it would turn out like this."

" . . . Don't worry, Risa." Riku said, hugging her. "It will work out. I'll talk to Daisuke today. If he talks to Hiwatari-kun, I'm sure he'd be willing to forgive you."

"I don't think that's possible, Riku!" She sobbed. "You didn't see . . . you didn't see the look he gave me as he left. It was like he would never look at me the same way ever again!"

"We'll find some way to fix it." Riku said kindly. "Would you like to come with me and Daisuke today?"

"No . . . no that's okay. I don't think . . . I don't think I can look at Niwa right now." Risa murmured. "If it's alright, I'd like to just stay here."

"What? You're kidding, right? You can't seriously think I'm going to let you stay in your room all day! It's a free day, no lectures, no teachers telling us what to do, we can do whatever we want!"

"Riku . . . I'm not feeling well. I think I would just like to lie down right now." Risa sniffled. Riku sighed and looked at her watch. "Risa, it's already noon. You shouldn't let Hiwatari ruin your vacation for you! Come out with me and Daisuke. We'll get everything worked out."

"Really, I'm not in the mood. Maybe tomorrow, when we go to the mall." She sighed. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to ruin your vacation too."

"You're not ruining my vacation." Riku said with a smile. "But if you really don't want to, I guess I can't force you to go. Just . . . don't . . . don't let it eat away at you, okay? Everything will work out alright."

"Yeah . . ." Risa said. There was a knock at the door, and a soft smile spread across Riku's face. "I'll talk to him, I promise." She said before opening the door. Risa flopped on her bed and buried her face in her pillow as her sister left. How could things have turned out like this? She hadn't meant to hurt Hiwatari . . . she would _never_ do anything to intentionally hurt him. Lord knows he had already been hurt enough in his lifetime. She sighed, wanting nothing more than to go to him and tell her how sorry she was. Perhaps she would find him standing on the beach - _their _beach - staring out at the sea. The wind would leave his hair slightly tousled, and the sun would glimmer on his pale skin.

She would run to him, crying, and wrap her arms around him. She would apologize repeatedly, saying over and over that she hadn't wanted this to happen and that she would never do anything to hurt him. She would tell him that she wanted nothing but his happiness, that he _deserved_ nothing but happiness.

Then, he would apologize. She would look up at him, confused, and he would apologize for making her so upset. He would tell her he didn't like to see her upset . . . that her beautiful eyes need never shed another tear on his account. Then, he would lean down and kiss her on her cheek . . . then on her lips . . .

She fell asleep, still imagining Satoshi Hiwatari's lips on hers.

------------------------

_Blah, short chapter. Sorry! But you know . . . I hope it kind of got the point across._

_Okay, first of all, I want to thank everyone who reviewed. I can't tell you how much I love reading your reviews. They make me giddy with happiness. But I would like to know if it bothers anyone that I respond to them. Like . . . is it getting on anyone's nerves? Because I really like communicating with the readers, but I'm afraid that my constant PM ing is getting annoying. Please respond! _

_As always, please review!!! 3_


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

_Aaarg! Writer's block is a bitch! It was like this chapter DID NOT want to get written. I tried over and over to start it, but the words just wouldn't appear! Lots of head banging ensued._

Disclaimer: Still don't own it.

"It was all just a huge mistake." Riku said, reaching over the table and taking Daisuke's hand. They had been sitting in Haagen-Dazs for about fifteen minutes before Riku finally got around to asking him about Hiwatari. It was an uncomfortable topic for both of them, but once she made it clear that Risa was at fault the mood lightened considerably. "From what she said, Hiwatari-kun is really upset over the whole thing."

"Great." Daisuke whined and put his head down on the table. "Aw, this trip was supposed to be _relaxing_!"

"Yeah, I know . . ." She paused thoughtfully. "Do you think . . . there could be anything between them? Hiwatari-kun and Risa, I mean."

Daisuke looked surprised. "Satoshi and Risa?" He repeated. "Why would you say that?"

"Because . . . well . . ." She didn't want to blab her sisters secrets to anyone, but Daisuke was her boyfriend, _and _the closest person to Satoshi Hiwatari. So if anyone would be of help, it would be him. "My sister . . . she seems to think she has . . . feelings . . . for Hiwatari-kun."

"What?!" His expression went from surprised to astonished in an instant. "S-Satoshi? But she hardly even knows him!"

"I know, I know . . . but she seems really . . . serious about it. It's not like it was with Dark. She _loved _to brag about it with him, but with Hiwatari . . . it's like she doesn't want me to know . . ."

"Kind of like the way you were about me?" Daisuke said with a sweet smile.

"Yeah. Kind of like that." She said. She leaned across the table and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. He blushed and smiled sheepishly at her.

"Ahem . . . so . . . uh, what now?"

"I think we should find Hiwatari." Riku said, standing up. Daisuke nodded and followed her example.

------------------------

Risa awoke with a start and glanced at her clock. 3:37 already? Had she really been asleep for that long? She remembered waking up a couple of times and thinking "Just five more minutes. Five minutes turned into ten . . . fifteen. . . fifty . . . an hour and a half . . . finally three hours. Goodness, she felt lazy!

She sighed and crawled out of bed, her stomach growling loudly. Ah . . . she hadn't eaten today . . . Riku still wasn't back - no surprise there - so she couldn't hang around her and Daisuke. Well, there were restaurants everywhere. She could probably find something to eat . . .

She blushed, feeling a little guilty about the dreams she suddenly remembered - a dream that involved Satoshi Hiwatari and a hot tub - then shook her head. He hated her. He had every right to hate her. She shouldn't be fantasizing about a guy who was probably wishing he had left her to swim with the jellyfish. Unrequited love was sort of romantic. Unrequited _lust _was just pathetic.

Sighing, she brushed out her hair and replaced the flower. She still looked nice - maybe she would run into Hiwatari. If that happened, maybe she could get him to forgive her. It wasn't just that she liked him . . . she just wanted him to know that she was sorry for what she did.

------------------------

"Satoshi! Hey, Satoshi!" Satoshi Hiwatari turned around to find Daisuke waving frantically and running in his direction, followed closely by Riku. He had been standing on the beach - the one they were _supposed_ to go to, watching the waves and planning out his next painting. It was the only thing he could do when he was angry - lose himself in the world of art.

"Hey." He said when they caught up to him. Daisuke stopped to catch his breath.

"Hey." He finally managed to say, and looked up at him with a bright grin. "Riku and I just got back from Haagen-Dazs. We've been looking everywhere for you."

"Really." He looked genuinely surprised. "Why?"

"I thought . . . well . . ."

"You know, I think I'm going to go back to my room. I forgot . . . my . . . camera." She said. "Bye Diasuke, bye Hiwatari-kun." With that, she ran off, allowing them their privacy. Daisuke smiled up at Satoshi.

"Wanna go for a walk?" Daisuke suggested. Satoshi shrugged.

"Sure." He said, and Daisuke's smile broadened. "Where do you want to go?"

"Anywhere." he looked up at the skies, then at his watch. "We might want to get back to the hotel. It rains at four thirty, remember?"

"Yeah." Satoshi said.

"You've been thinking about painting." Daisuke said as they started to leave.

"Of course. But how did you guess?"

Daisuke shrugged. "Just a guess. You _are_ a Hikari, after all. I just figured . . ." He smiled. "I guess you find it as relaxing as I do."

"Yeah." Satoshi muttered.

"Um . . . Satoshi . . ."

"Yes, Daisuke?"

"Sorry . . . about last night." He sighed, but Satoshi merely shrugged.

"It's okay."

They were walking on concrete now, making their way back to the hotel. It was only a few blocks away, but they were walking slowly.

"No, it's not okay." Daisuke said. Satoshi walked a few more steps before realizing Daisuke had stopped.

"Daisuke, yes it is. Don't worry about it."

"Satoshi, you know that if you were . . . like that . . . I wouldn't mind . . . I mean . . . it wouldn't affect our friendship at all . . ."

"I know that, Daisuke. But I assure you, I'm not gay. I harbor no romantic feelings toward you whatsoever."

"Really?'

"Really."

"So . . . then . . . I'm not . . ."

"You're not my sacred maiden." Satoshi said with a slight smile..

"Oh! Thank God!" He said with a laugh. "N-no offense, Satoshi . . . it's just that . . ."

"I understand." Satoshi said. Daisuke smiled nervously. Time for plan "Follow-Riku's-orders-and-try-to-set-Satoshi-up-with-Risa"!

"Sooo . . . who_is _your sacred maiden?"

"I don't know." Satoshi answered honestly. "I'm not even sure if I have one."

"What? What do you mean? Of course you have a sacred maiden!"

"I just don't know . . . sometimes I wonder if there is someone out there for me."

"Satoshi . . . don't be like that."

"It's the truth." Satoshi shrugged. "I mean, I _am _a Hikari. My family . . . has always been fated to be alone."

"But Krad's gone now! You have nothing to worry about!"

"I know. I know." He shrugged. "It's really not a big deal. If there is a sacred maiden out there for me, I'll find her eventually."

"Hmm . . . Well, I'm just glad it's not me."

"Trust me, so am I." Satoshi said with a smirk.

"Hey, look out!" Someone shouted a moment before Satoshi was knocked to the ground. The boy got off of his bicycle, horrified, and helped him to his feet. "I'm _so _sorry!" He said. "I wasn't watching where I was going. Are you okay?"

"I think so." Satoshi muttered, fighting back the urge to tell him to pay more attention.

"I'm really really sorry."

"It's not a big deal." He gave him a death glare that said "get back on your bike and get out of my sight this instant!"

"Uh . . . okay, well if you're sure . . . I gotta go!" He said hastily and jumped back on his bicycle.

"Hmm . . . you'd think he'd pay more attention . . ."

"You're bleeding!" Daisuke said, grabbing Satoshi's arm. Indeed, one of his elbows had been skinned.

"Oh . . ."

"Here!" Daisuke pulled a red band-aid out of his pocket.

". . . Well prepared, aren't we Daisuke?" He took the band-aid, looked at it, and smirked. A chuckle escaped from his mouth.

"Wh-what's so funny?"

"I . . . don't think you meant to give me _this_."

"Huh?" Daisuke took the band-aid from him. _True Love_ it said on the wrapper. Daisuke and Satoshi both looked at each other for a second before both boys burst out laughing. Okay, it was mostly Daisuke - Satoshi merely chuckled quietly. Still, it was more than he was used to. They glanced at each other again and the laughter started over.

"H-Here," Daisuke finally managed to say. "Take this one instead." He handed him a more platonic band-aid, still chuckling slightly.

"Thanks." Satoshi opened the band-aid and carefully applied it to his elbow. "That was kind of awkward."

"Just a little." Daisuke laughed, then looked at the threatening sky. "Oh! We'd better get going. I think I just felt a raindrop!"

------------------------

Curfew was at ten. By ten-thirty, Daisuke and Satoshi were engrossed in a horror movie. Well, Daisuke was. Satoshi was merely pointing out the flaws.

"You'd think she'd be smart enough to use her cellphone to call the police, instead of her boyfriend." He muttered. Daisuke shot him a look.

"Maybe she's too scared to think straight."

"Obviously. If she were thinking straight, she wouldn't have gone into the house in the first place. She would've told the police that her sister was missing, and they could've found her for her . . ."

"You're ruining this for me, you know." Daisuke said with a grin.

"Ah. Sorry."

There was a knock on the door. They both glanced at each other. They'd already had their room checked. Daisuke got up to answer the door.

"Maybe it's the axe murderer." Satoshi said. Daisuke looked at him from over his shoulder.

"Don't even joke . . . Oh! It's Riku!" He opened the door. "Hey! . . . What's wrong? What is it?"

"It's Risa." She said, her voice shaking. "It's way past curfew, and she hasn't come back yet."

"I'm sure she's alright -" He started, but she shook her head.

"No! You don't understand! She's out there by herself, and you know what a magnet she is for trouble! I hate to say this about her . . . but she really can't take care of herself." She looked at him pleadingly.

"Don't worry! I'll go with you to find her!"

"It will actually be better if we split up." Satoshi said, tugging a sweater on over his head and walking to the door.

"Oh! Hiwatari-kun! You're coming too?"

He nodded. "Normally I would say we should all stick together, but we need to cover as much ground as possible. Daisuke, you go with Harada-san. I'll go by myself."

"Will you be okay?"

"Of course." He said with a shrug. "Oh, and you might want to grab a sweater. I've heard it gets cold at night . . ."

_Meh, I just realized how slow this story is going. Bah, sorry guys. I'll try to pick things up in the next chapter . . . once my writing mojo comes back. I was feeling like blah with this chapter, so sorry if it's crappy. I'll update asap, and tryto make the next chapter better. _


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Still don't own it!

Risa walked along the beach, knowing she was probably past curfew and not caring. After she had woken up, she had stayed out of her room for the entire day. Hawaii really was a beautiful place, and she couldn't get over how interesting the people were. She passed by a man painted in complete silver who danced to the music of a stereo for tips. Near the mall there was a guy painted with _gold_ paint, who played something resembling a gold oboe.

Hawaii was truly amazing, and she was experiencing it without limitations. Hiwatari was wrong - there was nothing to be scared of, save for a few jellyfish, but even those seemed nonthreatening now that she was out of the water. She didn't _need_ anyone telling her what to do, where to go. She could find it all by herself!

Now, standing on the beach she had dragged Hiwatari to, she felt surprisingly disappointed. It wasn't that she had been _expecting _him to be there, but she had certainly hoped he would be. A small part of her had known better - it was Hiwatari, after all. There was no way he was going to forgive her. This wasn't _their _beach . . . she was stupid for even thinking that. There was not going to be any romantic apologies. Hiwatari wasn't going to come back and sweep her off of her feet. That just wasn't who he was. Even if he did forgive her, it was like he always said: He didn't have time for girls.

It was a t that moment that she realized something: his glasses! If she found them for him, he'd have to talk to her! He had left them on this very beach - maybe if she found them she could win back his approval. She quickly made her way to the stone pier, noting with some interest that the jellyfish sign had been fixed. Vaguely, she wondered if her accident had anything to do with it.

She walked up and down the stone jetty once . . . twice . . . three times, all to no avail. His glasses were gone, probably knocked into the ocean at high tide by a large wave. Great . . . now what was she supposed to do? Sure, they were just glasses, and sure he didn't even need them, but he had risked his own life to try to save her! And how did she repay him? Spread a rumor that was certain to get back to him and cost him his only friend!

She sighed and sat down on the pier, feeling miserable. At the same time, however, she was enchanted by the charm of a Hawaiian night. How beautiful - the moonlight was reflecting off the dark water, and the black waves, surly yet not threatening as long as she wasn't in them, crashed against the rock. You would never know the hidden dangers that lie beneath the water's surface. And to think, just yesterday, Hiwatari had dived off of this pier to save her life . . . The thought made her shudder.

"Hiwatari . . ." She murmured, remembering the look on his face when he had been planning to paint. It wasn't the calculating expression he always wore - this look was more dreamy, as if he were caught between the world of reality and art. That was the first time she had ever seen him - really _seen_ him for what he was. He wasn't just a cold, cunning genius. He was an artist, a person. If you cut him, he would bleed, just like everyone else. She sighed again. Maybe . . . maybe Hiwatari . . . wasn't as creepy as she had originally thought. Maybe he was just misunderstood. Maybe . . ."

"Wouldn't it be awful if you fell in? No one would ever find you." Suddenly, she wasn't alone anymore. She didn't recognize the man who was blocking her only exit. He was tall and dark of skin, and he was wearing a black trench coat with a black shirt and black pants. Around his neck hung a camera.

"Um . . . excuse me?" She asked faintly, realizing she was completely alone with him.

"Wouldn't it be awful if you fell in? No one would ever know . . ." When he saw the look on her face, he laughed. Somehow it made him seem even more frightening. "Oh, I didn't mean _you_. I was just saying . . ." His laughter ended abruptly, and he was serious again. "Wouldn't it be terrible?"

"Um . . . yes. It would." She wanted to get away from him, but the only way of getting off of the pier - other than braving the jellyfish infested waters - was to get past him.

"I'm trying to take a picture of the ocean . . . but I can't get it from the right angle." He paused thoughtfully. "Could you . . . take the picture for me?"

The only thing she could think was _"He's going to push me in. He's going to push me in. Why is he doing this?"_ "Um . . . I-I should be leaving." She stood up, but he took a step toward her. She took a step back in response.

"Are you sure you can't stay?"

"Y-Yeah. It's past curfew . . . and . . ."

"Oh, _there _ you are!" Relief washed over her at the sound of Hiwatari's voice. "I've been looking _everywhere _for you."

"H-Hiwatari-kun!" She cried in relief. He rushed to her side, and she was about to throw her arms around him, but he didn't give her a chance. Instead, he took her in his arms and kissed her right on the lips.

"I know we've only been apart for a few hours, but I missed you. I was so worried. Let's never fight again, darling."

Huh? A kiss? Darling? What was Hiwatari getting at?

"So . . ." The stranger looked at the two of them "You two are . . ."

"Together? Oh yes." Hiwatari put an arm around her waist and pulled her against him. "But we should be leaving now. Come on. We're probably going to get in trouble for being out past curfew." With that, he steered her past the guy, who stood gaping at the two of them. He looked like he was about to try something, but one glacial look from Hiwatari stopped him in his tracks. It was amazing the effects an icy glare from a fourteen year old could have on people.

------------------------

He kept his arm around her until they were out of sight of the creepy guy. The shock of what had happened had worn off quickly, and she found herself in tears. Had that really just happened? Could she have nearly just been murdered? Suddenly Hawaii felt a lot less like a tropical paradise than it had an hour ago . . .

The minute Hiwatari was sure it was safe, he removed his arm from around her waist and spun her around forcefully. "What the _hell_ were you thinking?!" He shouted furiously, grabbing her wrists. "You could've been killed!"

"I-I'm sorry!" She gasped, tears streaming down her face.

"Why don't you ever listen? I _told_ you it was dangerous to go off by yourself! I _told_ you! Why didn't you listen to me! Do you have any idea what could've happened if I hadn't shown up?!"

"I was trying to find your glasses!" She sobbed. He stopped seething suddenly and just stared at her.

"My glasses? You were trying to find my gl-" He looked absolutely flabbergasted. "Wh-why would you do something like that? Of course, they're gone by now!"

"I felt bad because you lost them when you saved me. I thought that if I found them . . . that maybe I could get you to talk to me . . . and . . ." She sobbed.

"Risa . . ." he sighed, then pulled him to her. She found herself crushed against his chest, her head taking in his light, soapy scent. Still crying, she clung to his shirt like a child. "At least I found you." He murmured, holding her tight against him. "Do you have any idea how devastated your family would be if something happened to you?" She sniffled, and he sighed. "Do you have any idea how devastated _I_would be?"

"Not terribly. You might actually be a little relieved." She sobbed against his shirt. God, she felt safe in his arms.

"Is that really what you think, Risa-san?" When she nodded, he stroked her hair. "I would never wish for any harm to come to you." He said gently.

"I-I want to go home, Hiwatari-kun!" She cried. "I want to go back to Japan!"

"Don't be like that, Risa-san." He murmured. "We still have five more days here . . ."

"I'm scared! I don't like it here! It's not fun anymore, it's just . . . awful! I saw a man digging through the garbage for food! It's dark and scary and . . . and I hate it!"

"Yeah . . . Waikiki is a completely different place by night." He held her close. "Stay with me, though, and I promise I won't let anything happen to you."

She was still sobbing. There was nothing he could do but hold her. He rested his chin on the top of her head and closed his eyes. For a moment, they just stood there, clinging to each other. His embrace made her feel cared for . . . he was holding her with the same intensity you hold a toddler you caught just before they walked out into traffic. He held her as if she were the only thing in the world that mattered at that moment.

They stayed like that for a minute, then she felt Hiwatari shift slightly and reach into his pocket. Opening one eye, she saw him pull out a cell phone. She closed her eyes and listened.

"Yeah." He said. "She's with me. You don't need to worry . . . no, go back to your room. I'll take care of her . . . I don't know, but we've already had room check so it really shouldn't matter . . . we'll sneak back in . . . alright . . . of course. You're welcome . . . yeah." With that he snapped the phone shut. "Your sister wants me to have you back in your room by midnight. That gives us an hour . . ."

"Wh-what?" She looked up at him, her eyes questioning.

"Unless of course, you'd rather go back to your room. I'd understand that. You must be tired from-"

"No . . . that's okay!" She said. "What do you want to do?!"

"Well . . . are you hungry?"

"A little." She said with a smile. "Why, do you have a place in mind?"

"Well . . . you like ice cream, don't you? Haagen-Dazs is famous for their ice cream."

"That sounds . . . wonderful." She smiled up at him. As long as she stayed with him, she knew she was safe.

"Here." He removed the jacket he was wearing. "You're shivering."

"Oh . . ." She hadn't even realized she was cold. His jacket swallowed her, reaching her knees easily. It was . . . pleasant. She sighed and took his hand. He looked at her curiously, but made no objection.

------------------------

"Why did you kiss me, Hiwatari-kun?"

"You may call me by my first name, if you wish." He said stiffly.

"Oh, thank you. But don't try to change the subject, _Satoshi-kun_."

"Hmm . . ."

"Why did you do it? I know it didn't . . . _mean _anything. I could tell by the way you did it there was no romantic purpose in it. So . . . why did you do it?"

"Well . . ." he paused thoughtfully. "I was trying to picture the scenario from the point of view of that guy. . . as chief commander of the police force, it's a basic instinct. I figured that if he saw me as merely a friend, I was sure to be less of a threat."

"How do you figure? I would try my hardest to protect my friends!"

"Well, that's certainly sweet, but I figure a jealous boyfriend is more likely to go after someone than a friend." He shrugged. "Sorry if it made you uncomfortable. It was strictly to protect you."

A kiss for protection. Well, that was a new one. "Thank you . . . Satoshi-kun. That's the second time you've saved my life."

He shrugged. "Here, come with me, there's something I want to show you." He led her to a brown statue that was just a few blocks away from the hotel "Yeah, I saw this earlier. What about it?"

"My family created it." He murmured. She gasped.

"Really?!"

". . . No." He said with a slight smirk. She glared at him.

"Ha ha. Nice one,_Hikari_-kun."

"No, but look." He pointed up to the top of a lamp post. "See anything interesting?"

"No . . . wait a second . . ." She squinted. "Is that . . . a webcam?!"  
"Yeah. Smile and wave."

"How did it get all the way up there?" She asked, waving at it.

"I don't know. It's been up there for a while, so I've heard."

"That's cool." She said with a laugh. "Hey! That means my mom could probably see me!"  
"Yeah, there's about a five to ten minute delay in the internet, but tell her to look up Hawaiian webcams until she finds one of a statue." He handed her his cellphone."Really, Hiwatari? You don't mind if I . . ."

"Go ahead." He said, and she punched in the number. It she waited anxiously, but it went straight to voicemail. Sighing in disappointment, she closed the phone and gave it back to him.

"They probably don't have service." She muttered, handing him the phone. "They're on a stupid cruise."

"Oh . . . well . . . we'll come back here again before we leave. Perhaps you'll be able to reach them then."

"I hope so . . ." She sighed. "It would be cool if they could see how I'm doing in Hawaii. They have wireless internet . . . if they're in port maybe . . ." She smiled at him. "Satoshi-kun . . . does this mean you forgive me?"

" . . ." he was quiet for a moment. "Yes . . . it does. I forgive you."

"I'm so sorry, Satoshi-kun." She said. Dammit, why was she on the verge of tears again?

"Don't worry about it." He could see the tears in her eyes. "Please . . . don't cry."

"I just . . . I can't stand the thought of you hating me."

He sighed. "I shouldn't have said that. It was wrong. No matter how angry I get with you, I should never say that I hate you. It's not true."

"You're just saying that. How can you not hate me after what I did?"

"I'm not going to say I know you very well, Risa-san, but I do think I know you well enough to say that you can't help it. You don't really think before you act."

She was about to deny it, then realized he was right. "Well . . ."

"And even though it's a bad thing, and it's going to probably get you in a lot of trouble." he looked meaningfully at her, and she nodded. "it's part of who you are."

"Yeah . . . "

"You realize of course, it's only the second day, and already you've been stung by jellyfish and had a run in with an insane person." He shrugged. "Just something you might want to think about."

"But . . . as long as I have you around, I don't have to worry." She smiled brightly.

"Yeah . . . but what if I wasn't around? What if I hadn't come on this trip. Where do you think you would be right now?"

" . . . I don't know." She said honestly. "I might be dead." He nodded. She smiled slightly and looped her arm through his, laying her head on his shoulder. "But you _are_ here, Satoshi-kun, and I'm extremely thankful for that."

He looked away so she wouldn't she the blush that ran across his face. "Uh . . . l-let's go . . . you wanted ice cream, didn't you?"

"Yeah!" she laughed and hugged his arm closer.

_"We barely even know each other . . . yet she acts like we're a couple or something._" This bothered him . . . but not as much as the fact that he was kind of enjoying it.

------------------------

Risa wouldn't eat unless he got something.

"No! I'll feel fat!"

"Risa-san, you're not fat."

"It doesn't matter! I'll _feel_ fat if I eat and you don't." She pouted. "Please, Satoshi-kun!"

He rolled his eyes. "Fine, fine. I'll get something, just go ahead and order."

She smiled. "I'll have a double Jamocha-almond-fudge on a sugar cone, please. And you?" She looked expectantly at him.

"Uh . . . vanilla, one scoop, sugar cone."

"_Vanilla_?" She looked at him skeptically. "That's all you're getting?"

"What's wrong with vanilla?" He asked defensively. "It's a perfectly fine flavor."

"It's just so . . . _boring_! Especially when you have all these other great flavors to get."  
"Like . . . Jamocha-almond-fudge." he crossed his arms.

"Yeah! It's extra super caffeinated, and it has fudge and almonds in it!"

"I sort of guessed that." He half smirked, half smiled at her. The expression was both endearing and . . . dare she say . . . seductive . . . at the same time. At least, that's how she saw it.

"Here you go." The girl at the counter handed them their ice cream. Satoshi paid for it, and was about to walk off, when a hesitant voice stopped him.

"Um . . . excuse me." The girl at the counter said. Oh, jeez. Risa knew that look. "Sir, can I ask you a question?"

Satoshi looked at her curiously. "Yes."

"You hair . . . is that your natural color?"  
"Yes it is." He said in an exasperated tone. She giggled.

"I bet you get that a lot."

"Yes I do. It gets annoying after a while. Is there anything else?"

"What? Uh . . . no. I just wanted to know . . ." She looked embarrassed. For some reason, Risa didn't feel sorry for her. In fact, she felt somewhat smug that Satoshi hadn't given her a second glance.

They got a booth in the corner and sat opposite to each other.

"This is the best ice cream _ever_." Risa gloated. Satoshi rolled his eyes and looked down at his ice cream.

_"_Risa-san." He said softly. He would have to be very careful about how he went about this. "Do you . . . want to talk about what happened?"

"Um . . . what do you mean, Satoshi-kun?"

"Well . . ." Without even meaning to, he went into "police mode" "We're probably going to need to report this incident to the police." He tried to shove his glasses up, then remembered he wasn't wearing them. "Ahem . . . so . . . . if you had anything you want to talk to me about . . ."

She stood up abruptly, glaring at him. "So that's it, then?"

"Wait . . . what?"

"That's the only reason you're hanging out with me? So you can interrogate me?!"

"What? No!"

"I know you're a Chief of Police back in Japan, but that doesn't give you the right to play police officer with me!"

"Risa-san!" He grabbed her arm. "I'm not here because I want to interrogate you. I'm here because I want to be. I just thought . . . that you might want to talk about it . . ."

"Yeah well . . ." She muttered jerking her arm away from him. "I don't want to tell the police. It's not a big deal."

" . . . Yes it is."

"Really, Satoshi-kun . . . I don't want everybody finding out - especially not Riku. She'd have a heart attack."

"You're telling me to keep this a secret from your sister?"

"And Daisuke! You can't tell him either! This has to be _our _secret."

"Eh . . . fine . . . your ice cream is melting."

"Oh!" She gasped grabbed a napkin to wrap around the cone. Satoshi smiled slightly.

"We should probably get back to the hotel . . . we're already way past curfew."

"Okay . . . Satoshi-kun . . . thank you."

" . . . Your welcome, Risa-san." He opened the door for her. Once outside she moved closer to him, taking his arm with her free hand. He didn't stiffen at her touch.

_------------------------_

_Thankies to everyone who bared with me through my writers block. Obviously, I worked through it to produce my longest chapter yet._

_A little note The creepy, crazy guy on the pier scene - TOTALLY happened to me. No lie. For real, it was scary as hell. The conversation in the story was exactly the same as real life, except Satoshi didn't show up. Instead, my friend Patrick did. I was like "PATRICK!" and ran to him._

_Anyway . . . it was scary. I refer to it as my "I almost got murdered in Hawaii" story. _

_So . . . yeah . . . please review. _


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

_Just a little note before chapter 12: I kind of hurt my wrist in Pilates class (don't ask me how - I don't even know), so I'm typing this chapter with a brace on. If there are any MAJOR mistakes that I don't find in editing . . . blame the brace. _

Disclaimer: Still don't own it.

"Okay Risa . . . exactly what happened last night?"

"N-Nuh?" Risa turned over and looked at her sister. "Ugh . . . it's too early Riku. Go back to sleep. We'll talk about it later."

"No, we're going to talk about it now!" She yanked the blankets off of the bed, causing Risa to curl up into a tiny ball.

"Nooo! Turn the air conditioner down!"

"Risa, you have to get up. Breakfast is in an hour, and you still need to take a shower."

"Nnn . . . go without me. I'm not hungry."

"You can't skip breakfast. You can't hike up a volcano on an empty stomach! Now get up, because you have a lot of explaining to do."

"Ugh, Riku!" She moaned. "I just wanna sleep."

"Too bad. If you hadn't been out so late with Hiwatari you wouldn't be so tired."

"You know it's nothing like that." She muttered, turning back on her side and closing her eyes.

"Oh no you don't!" Riku said. "You need to get ready!"

"_Riku_!" Risa groaned. "Let me sleep! I don't want to got to Perry's Smorgy!"

" . . . Hiwatari will be there."

"Uh . . . s-so?"

"_So_, I'll make sure to arrange it so that you two sit next to each other. So you'd better hurry up and take a shower - you don't want to gross him out."

"Oh, Riku! You're so evil!" But she was already getting out of bed.

"Don't take too long - we only have an hour before breakfast starts. And don't worry - we're coming back to the hotel after breakfast for about an hour, so you'll have time to change into your hiking clothes then."

"What?"

"Well, I know you want to wear something to impress your dear Hiwatari-kun." She said with a grin. Risa groaned.

"Remember, our teacher wants us at Perry's Smorgy by eight. One hour . . . don't take too long.

"Okay!" She called, shutting the door.

------------------------

An hour and ten minutes later, Risa stepped from the bathroom, bringing with her the scent of spring. She was wearing a white sundress and a pink flower in her hair . . . again. She kind of liked the way her hair looked with a flower tucked behind her ear. Her white, wedge sandals gave her the feeling of being two inches taller.

"Wow! That was the shortest shower I think I've ever -" She stopped when she realized she and Riku weren't alone. While Riku stood, tapping her foot in impatience, Daisuke was sitting quietly on her bed. Satoshi was there too, looking out the window, though he turned in her direction the moment she stepped from the bathroom. She blushed bright red. "Oh . . . I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make everyone wait."

"It's alright, Risa. Let's just go before we're even _more _late." Riku grumbled, walking out into the hall. Risa sighed, but caught Satoshi's eye. He gave her a brief smile, and paused at the door. He wasn't corny enough to say "Ladies first.", but she got the message. Why had she never noticed how polite he was?

Once again, Riku and Daisuke were being all cute and coupley as they walked down the hallway together, but this time it wasn't quite so awkward since she and Satoshi were friends. Now they could exchange exasperated glances at one another, both slightly embarrassed by the cuteness radiating from the couple walking in front of them.

"So, Satoshi-kun . . ." She said, enjoying the fact that she could call him by his first name. "Are you looking forward to the hike today?"

"Yes. It will be quite an experience, and it should provide a great opportunity for photos. You'll probably want to bring your camera."

"Of course!" She said with a smile, secretly planning on taking as many pictures of Satoshi as she possibly could. She _would _get a picture of him smiling! Then . . . she could sell it to his fan girls and make millions. The thought struck her as hilarious, and she started to giggle.

"What's so funny?"

"N-nothing. Just a thought I had." She giggled again. Of course she wouldn't do it - it was just a humorous thought that came to mind. There really was no telling how much his fan girls would pay for a picture of him smiling. Poor Satoshi . . . being stalked must suck sometimes.

Because they were already very late, the elevators were clear. Risa said a grateful prayer - she was already hiking up a volcano later. The last thing she wanted was to have to start the day off with a trek down the stairs!

------------------------

Riku was true to her word. As soon as they reached Perry's Smorgy and found a table next to the pond, she hastily sat next to Daisuke so that Risa and Satoshi were forced to sit together. Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but Risa had a feeling that even if her sister hadn't gone through that trouble, Satoshi would've chosen to sit next to her anyway. But again, it could've just been wishful thinking.

"I could never get tired of this food." Riku said with a sigh. "Hawaii is amazing."

"I know! Are you sure you don't want anything, Satoshi-kun?"

"I'm sure." He took a sip of his coffee. She could tell by his expression that he didn't like it.

"I can't stand coffee unless it has lots of cream and sugar in it." She said. "I don't see how you can drink it when it's black."

He shrugged. 'It's not that good, but it wakes me up. I don't like it any better with cream or sugar, so I really see no point in putting it in."

"So why do you drink it if it's _that _bad?"

"It wakes me up."

"Oh!" She said, then peered at him. "Hey, how come you're not sleepy this morning?"

"Excuse me?"

"Aren't you usually tired in the mornings because of your low blood pressure?"

"Yeah, but I got up earlier than usual today." When she looked confused, he explained. "The longer I'm awake, the sooner I'll actually wake up. A shower helps, so I got up at five, and at five-thirty I took a shower. By six I was awake."

"You were up at five?!" She gasped. "But we didn't get back until midnight!"

"I know."

"So you only got five hours of sleep?!"

"Actually, four. I didn't get to sleep until about 1:00." He shrugged, but she groaned.

"You need to take better care of yourself, Satoshi-kun!" She said, crossing her arms. "It's no wonder you're so pale and thin! You stay up all night, get up early, and you _never_ eat!"

" . . . I eat." He muttered.

"Aaaieeeeeeeeeeeeee!" Oh dear God. A fan girl squeal. "Hiwatari-kun!" Yes, definitely a fan girl.

"Yes?" He turned to face her. Yes, it was one of them . . . the one with the carrot orange hair in braids.

"Hiwatari-kun! Why don't you come sit with us? We saved you a seat!" She indicated a round booth with a small space squeezed in the center of the girls. Apparently they expected him to sit amid all of them.

"I'm quite content sitting where I am, thank you." He muttered. She looked hurt for a minute, then glared.

"Okay, I see. Harada-san . . . did you tell us that dear Hiwatari-kun was gay just so you could have him all to yourself?" She put her hands on her hips. "Because we'll remain loyal to him no matter what. "

"Is that all?" Satoshi asked before Risa could retaliate. "Because if you don't mind, we would like to continue our breakfast _without_interruptions."

"Wha-well . . ." She glared past him, the hatred in her eyes directed at Risa. "You don't deserve him, you know. We liked him long before Dark left." With that, she turned on her heel and marched back to her table, obviously to retell the story to her other fan girl friends.

Satoshi sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He looked at Risa, his expression going from irritated to concerned. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine." She said, but her face had turned bright red and she was glaring down at her food. Riku glanced and Daisuke and stood up.

"I need to get some more pineapple juice." She said. After a swift kick under the table from Riku, Daisuke followed the suit.

"Uh . . . yeah. Me too."

Risa looked at her sister, not amused, but Riku merely smiled and dragged Daisuke away.

"Well . . . that wasn't the least bit obvious." Satoshi muttered, then looked at Risa. "What's wrong?"

"I . . . what do you mean? I'm okay."

He sighed. "I don't like secrets."

"Really . . . it's nothing." She couldn't look into his startlingly blue eyes.

"Don't listen to her." He said. She looked up at him, and he continued. "She doesn't know anything. None of them do."

"That was just . . . that was just a really low blow. That's all. Bringing up Dark like that . . . That really hurt."

". . . I'm sorry." He said, then wondered why he apologized. It wasn't _his_ fault he had a group of jealous middle-school girls watching his every move. Still, he couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible. "Don' pay attention to any of them . . . it's not you. They just don't like how much time we're spending together."

"Well . . . that's observant of you. I thought you didn't pay any attention to those girls."

"I don't really, but I can tell they don't like it. It must look strange to them - us spending so much time together." He paused. "They're really quite . . . frightening, aren't they?"

She laughed. "This coming from the guy who had a homicidal angel living within him?"

His eyes widened. "Not so loud." He muttered.

"Sorry, it just seems funny that someone like you would be frightened by girls."

"It's not all girls. _You_ don't scare me at all."

"Oh really?" She grinned. "And what makes me so different? Is it because I'm not a stalker?"

"No, that's not it . . . and you are a stalker."

"Am not!" She gasped. He smirked at her and she clenched her fists. "I'm not! If I remember correctly, it was _you_ that found _me_ last night!"

"Oh, you've never stalked _me_." he said, then paused. " . . . right?"

"Of course not! Now what are you . . ." She stopped and stared at him. "You're talking about Dark . . . aren't you?"

"Well . . ."

She blushed and looked away from him. "_Yes_, I followed him around, but if memory serves _you _went far enough to dress up like a girl to capture him. _Now_ who's the stalker?"

To her surprise, he smiled slightly. "I'm surprised you still remember that."

"Well, it's kind of hard to forget . . ." It was too difficult to stay angry with him for long, so she smiled up at him.

"Your sister and Daisuke are taking a long time." He muttered, seeming slightly amused. "I wonder what they expect to happen between us."

"I don't know. Riku's probably waiting for you to confess your undying love to me or something." She chuckled.

"That's very strange." He murmured, then glanced up. "And she's spying on us, too."

"What?" Risa turned in the direction he was looking and, sure enough, she could see the top of Daisuke's pointy hair sticking up from behind one of the booths. She groaned.

"Sorry. I guess she thinks that if we . . . well . . . you know . . . " It was still too awkward to say, but he nodded to show he understood. " . . .that it would mean I was over . . ." She had to swallow before she said his name. "Dark."

"Are you over him?" He asked bluntly. "Oh . . . I-I apologize." He cleared his throat and looked away. "That was rude of me."

She didn't answer him. She couldn't. She couldn't lie to Satoshi, but she couldn't tell him that she still wasn't quite over Dark yet. So she didn't answer his question. Fortunately, she didn't have to. Riku and Daisuke finally came back to the table.

"Took you long enough." Risa muttered.

"Where's the pineapple juice you went after?" Satoshi asked with a smirk. Riku blushed.

"Ahh . . . uh . . . I decided I wasn't that thirsty after all." She sat down. "So, what did you two talk about while we were gone?"

" . . . Dark." Satoshi said. His eyes met Risa's briefly, and she felt her heart speed up. Okay . . . maybe she _was _getting over Dark . . . slowly.

------------------------

_Alrighty, not my best chapter, but I promise cuteness is soon to come. Please review. The more reviews I get, the faster I update. Okay . . . that's a lie . . . I update whenever I finish the chapter . . . but still . . . reviews would be pleasant, as they are the only thing that keep me alive. : )_


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

_Eh . . . don't really have much to say . . . I'm listening to my play list of awesomeness, which includes music from Wicked, Phantom of the Opera, Pan's Labyrinth, Hairspray, Rent, and Techno-ness.- None of which I own.  
_

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own it. Sorry.

"So . . . Satoshi . . ." Daisuke looked down. "What . . . um . . . what do you think about Risa?" They were walking down he hallway to the girls' room. It had sort of become an unspoken rule that when they were going somewhere they would always wait for the twins.

"What do you mean." Satoshi asked, knowing exactly what Daisuke meant.

"You know . . . what do you _think _of her." God, this was embarrassing. But . . . Riku had wanted him to ask.

"You mean am I attracted to her?"

"Yeah."

" . . . yes."

Well _that _was unexpected. Daisuke had been expecting him to lie about it . . . or not answer . . . or . . . _something_. "R-Really?"

"Yes. She is quite attractive. Even _you _have to admit that."

"Well . . ." Daisuke looked uncomfortable. "She's pretty . . . but . . ."

"Not as pretty as her sister, right?"

"Right." He said confidently. Satoshi smirked. He felt the exact opposite. "Sooo . . ." Daisuke continued to press. "What do you think the prettiest thing about her is?"

"Excuse me?"

"Risa. What is the thing that draws you to her?"

"I'm not _drawn_to her. I said she is attractive. But anyone with eyes can see that."

"Yeah, but what is it about her appearance that you like the most."

" . . . Her eyes." He said, looking away. "She has . . . she has pretty eyes."

Daisuke's steps faltered. "B-B-But she and Riku have the same eyes!"

"Not really. If you'll look closely, you'll see that though they _look _the same, Risa-san's eyes have a softness about them. She's more . . ." He paused. "Don't take this the wrong way, but Risa-san is more feminine."

Daisuke chuckled. "Oh, I already knew _that._ But that's one of the reasons I like Riku so much. She's not . . . erm . . ."

" . . . High maintenance?" Satoshi looked at him out of the corner of his eyes.

"Uh . . ." He smiled sheepishly. "M-Maybe."

"It's okay, Daisuke. That's just your honest opinion."

The conversation would've gone further, but they had reached the twins' room. Daisuke knocked on the door. Riku opened it with a smile.

"Hey! We're actually ready on time! Risa only brought one pair of suitable hiking shorts." Riku said with a laugh. Satoshi was surprised that she had thought to bring anything at all. "She would've have even packed it if I hadn't reminded her." Oh . . . that explained it.

"Yeah yeah." Risa said, coming out of the bathroom, adjusting the rubber band in her hair. She was wearing knee length, khaki shorts, a black thick strapped tank top and brown hiking boots. Satoshi noticed with dissatisfaction that she had all of her hair pulled up into a pony-tail. Not that it mattered, but it _did _look better down.

"Let's go. The teachers won't like it if we hold the buses up, and we're probably going to have to take the stairs again."

"Riku, are you serious?" Risa looked at her sister wearily.

"Yeah. don't be lazy."

"Well . . . maybe the elevator won't be too crowded this time."

"Maybe. I doubt it though. Everyone wants to take the elevator, especially today since we're going to be hiking all day."

Riku took Daisuke's hand. Risa felt a stab of jealousy. Sure, she had held Satoshi's hand last night, but this was a completely different situation. She couldn't just grab Satoshi's hand when her sister and Daisuke were around. She couldn't do it when _anyone_ was around.

The truth was, she wasn't sure she had the nerve to try to hold his hand again. He wasn't her boyfriend, after all, she had a feeling that he hadn't let her cling to him because he'd wanted to. In fact, she was fairly certain he had only held her hand because she was so upset. Now that she was better, he probably didn't want her touching him. She sighed.

"Something wrong?" He asked. She shook her head and forced herself to smile up at him.

"No I'm fine . . . wait . . . Oh no!" She cried. Just as she had feared, the elevator was crowded with students trying to get to the first floor. "This doesn't mean we're walking, does it?"  
"I'm afraid so." Riku opened the door to the stairs. "C'mon."

"But we're already going hiking!" She moaned, following them through the door..

"Oh, don't be such a baby, Risa." Muttered Riku.

"I'm not being a baby. I just think . . . that we should . . . conserve our energy for the hike." How cute . . . she was trying to sound intelligent. Satoshi smirked over his shoulder at her.

"That's what the bus ride is for, Risa-san."

"Aw, not you too, Satoshi-kun! You're supposed to be on my side!"

"Why is that?"

"Because! The three of you can't just team up on me like that! It's not fair!" She could've sworn she heard him chuckle at this, but he made no other response. "Um . . . Sato-Satoshi-kun?" Risa whispered.

"Hm?"

"Uhm . . ." How to go about this . . . "Are you . . . are you going to be okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well . . . you know . . . you didn't eat anything this morning . . . and you didn't get much sleep last night . . . so I'm just worried about your health . . ."

"Oh . . . you mean you're worried about my low blood pressure."

"Yes." She replied softly. "I just . . ."

"Don't. I'm fine. Remember, I chased Dark under worse circumstances." _Oh yeah_. She had forgotten that little tidbit of information.

"Right . . . but still . . ."

"Risa, only three floors to go!" Riku called back to her. Risa groaned. Her legs were already aching. She could already tell that this was _not _going to be her kind of day.

------------------------

"So . . . what's the name of the volcano we're going up again?" They were on the bus, sitting in their usual seats.

"Diamond Head. It's not too far away - you can actually see it from the hotel."

"What?" She gasped. "Are you serious?!"

"Yes. That's it right there."

"That's not far away at all!"

"I know." He replied calmly. She gaped at him.

"What if . . . what if it erupts while we're here and we all die?!"

"Um . . . Risa-san . . . it's been extinct for years. You don't have to worry about that."

"Oh . . . so then . . . no lava?"

"No lava."

"Whew, that's a relief. It's hot enough already." She laid her head back against the seat. Satoshi just watched her for a moment. She looked up and caught him staring. "What?"

"Nothing. I . . . It's nothing." He sighed. "You remembered your camera, right?"

"Yep!" She pulled it out and showed him. "Can I take a picture of you, Satoshi-kun?"

"No."

"But I want to!"

"Please don't."

"Why not?" She pouted.

"I don't like having my picture taken."

"But you're so cute, Satoshi-kun!" She teased, then snapped a picture before he could protest.

"Please don't do that again."

"Why ?"

"I just told you, I don't like to have my picture taken. And you should save space on your camera for more interesting things."

"You're interesting." She said without thinking.

"Oh?"

"Uh . . . yeah. You know, you've got that whole 'mysterious' thing going for you. There's a lot about you that people want to know."

"Oh."

"Yeah . . . it's no wonder you have a fanclub."

"Hmm . . ." She could tell he didn't like talking about his fanclub, which, of course, made her want to talk about it all the more.

"Oh yeah, there's a lot of things about you that girls just _love_." She grinned. He looked out the window, and she scooted closer to him. "Like . . . your attitude."

"Ah."

"Yeah, they love it that you have a "get-away-from-me-or-die" attitude."

" . . . So the key to having a fanclub is to be indifferent to the rest of the world. If other guys knew that, maybe the girls would leave me alone and follow _them _around."

"Well, it's not just that." Risa smiled at him. "You're also really smart. Like, _really really _smart. They can't get over the fact that someone who's so good looking could be so intelligent too."

"Excuse me?"

"What?"

"Did you just say I was good looking?"

"Wha-well . . ." she grasped for an answer that wouldn't give him the wrong idea. She decided to 'play it cool'. "Well, yeah, they think your gorgeous. I don't really see what all the fuss is about." She handled that one well.

"So, you don't think I'm attractive."

"I've already said I don't like guys with glasses." She said, then felt extremely stupid. "But you're . . . not . . . wearing your glasses." She muttered. He gave her his most evil smirk to date and looked out the window without a word.

They spent the rest of the bus ride in awkward silence. Well, at least it was awkward for Risa. Even though he was looking out the window and she couldn't see his expression, Risa had a nagging feeling that he was probably fighting to keep from smiling.

_"Ooh, you're evil, Satoshi Hiwatari! EVIL!"_

------------------------

At the base of the volcano was a small park complete with a snow cone stand. Their tour guide took them aside for a brief description of what they could expect. "Diamond Head is a fairly moderate hike - it's .7 miles and shouldn't take any longer than two hours. There are places to rest along the way if you get tired, though I would suggest waiting until you reach the top. The more you rest, the more tired you become. \

At the top is an observatory. It is a great place to take pictures. However, if you feel like you can't make it, you may turn back at any moment. Just keep to the side and allow those who are going up to pass by. Are there any questions? Um, yes, you in the back."

Saehara leapt to his feet. "What are the chances of this volcano erupting in a massive, lava filled fireball of death?!"

"Er . . ." Their guide looked taken aback. "I don't think anything like that's going to happen. Are there any _other _ questions?" No one raised their hand. "No? Okay then, well, we can proceed with the climb now. Whenever you're ready, feel free to go on ahead." With that, he ended his speech and went to talk to their teacher. Riku jumped up.

"Come on! I want to be one of the first ones to reach the top!"

"Aw, Riku, can't we stay down here for a little while?" Risa complained. "It's nice here, and we can get a snow cone."

"No, lazy! Get up. You'll see - it'll be worth it once you see the view."

"Yeah, and you heard what he said, this is a moderate hike, so there won't be any climbing or anything. We'll just walk." Daisuke smiled at her, but she simply glared as she stood up.

"I remember what it was like _last _time we went hiking up a mountain." She muttered. "You guys went off to look a glow worms, and then _you_got hurt, Riku!"

Her sister ignored that last comment. "Let's go. I want to make it up there before Saehara does. That way we can have a little peace while we enjoy the view."

Risa looked over at Saehara, who was flirting shamelessly (and pitifully) with one of the native girls. "I don't think we have to worry about that." She muttered, but Riku still turned away and started heading for the path. Risa rolled her eyes and walked next to Satoshi. It had become kind of a habit that they walk next to each other. So when he was stopped by a teacher, she stopped too.

"Satoshi-kun. Are you feeling . . . you know . . . up to this?" He looked concerned.

"Yes sir . . ." he said warily. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was just wondering if there are any extra precautions we might want to take considering your . . . you know . . . condition."

"I believe I'll be okay. I'm not the only student who has a medical anomaly who will be hiking today." He said with just a hint of frostiness.

"I'm aware of that, and I've already spoken to the others. If there are any special arrangements . . ."

"I know what to do should my blood pressure drop, thank you." He said, his voice icy this time. With that he turned his back on the teacher and walked away. Risa chased after him, startled.

"Satoshi-kun, are you okay?"

"_That _is why I don't like people finding out I have hypotension. Because the minute we have to do something that requires the slightest amount of exertion they automatically assume I'm going to fall out." He was agitated. Risa could understand his frustration, but it seemed strange coming from someone like him. The great Satoshi Hiwatari embarrassed by low blood pressure?

"Hey you two! Hurry up!" Riku called from the base of the trail.

Risa sighed. "Coming!" Then she turned to Satoshi. "I guess we had better go. You know, I'm probably more likely to pass out than you are." This earned her a low but sincere chuckle from him.

"Considering how your trip has been so far, I wouldn't doubt it."

_Okay, so I know nothing really happened in this chapter. Sorry, but my brain has been kind of . . . what's the word I'm looking for . . . not-working-ish . . . with college and everything. So . . . Sorry, but that's all Chapter 13 has. I promise there will be more in Chapter 14. I PROMISE! . . . if you review, that is._


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Disclaimer: Still don't own it. Wish I did . . . but . . . nope.

"Ugh! I'm so tired, Riku! How much longer until we reach the top?" Risa leaned against the rock wall and wiped the sweat from her forehead. "It's_really _hot out here."

". . . Um . . . well we should be half way there."

"_Half way?_" Risa moaned. "But we've been walking for hours!"

" . . . it's only been about forty-five minutes, Risa." Riku said over her shoulder. "Come on, you can make it."

"But Riku!" She started. "It's too hot!"

"No it isn't! It's just humid, that's all, and there's a nice breeze blowing. You're just being a baby."

"No, I'm not! And I'm getting a headache!"

"Ugh. Risa, stop trying to get out of hiking. No one is going to carry you, if that's what you're thinking."  
"No! That's not it at all! I was just thinking that maybe we should take a break. Please? Just for a minute?"

"You heard what the guide said. It'll just make you more tired."

"Riku!" She was on the verge of tears, but she kept following them. A little bit farther up the trail, she stumbled over a loose rock. Satoshi caught her arm and kept her from falling. Then leaned down so his face was close to hers.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah." She replied.

"No I mean . . . are you feeling alright?"

"Wha- why?"

"Your face is flushed." Without another word he put his hand to her forehead. "Harada-san!" He called over his shoulder. "I think we _should_ stop."

"What?" Riku turned around. "Risa! What's wrong?" She cried when she saw Risa sitting down.

"I think she's getting too hot. Risa, why did you wear black?"

"What?"

"Black conducts and retains heat worse than white."

". . . Oh . . ." She muttered. "But it's just a tank top."

"It doesn't matter." He said,. "You should always wear light colors when you're hiking." For some reason, he felt slightly angry with himself. He should've thought to tell her not to wear black . . . but instead he had focused on now . . . nice she looked.

"Here!" Daisuke said, handing Satoshi a water bottle. "It had ice in it . . . I'm sure it's melted by now, but it's still pretty cool"

'Thank you." Satoshi murmured. He gently pressed the bottle to her forehead. "Does that help?"

" . . . Yeah . . . it does." She said, closing her eyes.

"Is she okay, Hiwatari-kun?" Riku asked. There was worry in her eyes. Satoshi looked over his shoulder and nodded to her.

"Here." He said and pressed it against the side of Risa's neck. She sighed, her eyes still closed and leaned against him. He blushed slightly, then smirked. Daisuke was right about her being high maintenance.

"I'm tired." She murmured against him. He moved away from her and handed her the water.

"Drink, then we need to get up. The longer we stay the hotter it's going to get." He took her arm, and when she was done he helped her to her feet. "Steady?"

"Y-Yeah. Thank you, Satoshi-kun." Risa said softly. He nodded, unsmiling, but she could tell he wasn't angry. She started to hand him the bottle, but he shook his head.

"Keep it, in case you need it again."

"Oh . . . thank you."

------------------------

Risa could tell - just by the little things - that she and Satoshi were growing closer. She could tell by the way he walked beside her even though she was lagging behind the group, and by the way he would grab her arm to steady her every time she stumbled - which was often. Twice she caught him watching her out of the corner of his eye, but he seemed embarrassed so she didn't want to say anything about it.

He would even talk to her. Like, actually talk to her . . . as in . . . _starting_conversations. At one point he grabbed her elbow. "Risa . . . look." They were rounding the corner of the mountain , and she could see off of the side. At first the only thing she noticed was how high up hey had gotten - the tree tops looked like green shag carpeting from this high up. She gasped and felt the world tilt as vertigo set in. Satoshi put his hands on her shoulders. "Look." He repeated in a whisper. His breath tickled her ear, and she could see what he was indicating. From their altitude they had a full view of the double rainbow Hawaii was famous for.

". . . Wow . . ." she whispered in amazement. "Satoshi-kun it's . . . it's . . ." Beautiful didn't seem like a strong enough word to describe it.

"Aren't you glad you made yourself come to the top?" He asked. She turned to look at him.

"What?"

He nodded over to the mouth of a cave where the trail led into. "After that we should be at the top. . . . well . . . aren't you going to take a picture? This is probably the best spot."

"Oh . . . Right." She smiled and took the camera from her bag. His hands were still on her shoulders, and she was thankful for that.- she'd always experienced vertigo when she was up too high. Having his hands there reminded her of how solid the ground was. She snapped three pictures then put her camera back in her bag, afraid that at any moment it would slip from her hands and go tumbling into the abyss below.

"Wow, it's so . . . ugh. Ewe." She said as she turned and looked at her sister and Daisuke. "They've got _that _look on their faces." She nudged Satoshi and said rather loudly. "Maybe we should go and let them have their alone time."

"Shut up. We weren't going to kiss." Riku muttered, but she looked a bit disappointed. Risa grinned knowingly at her sister but said nothing more. Riku gave her a glare before grabbing Daisuke's hand and nearly dragging him up the slope toward the cave. Ooh. She wasn't very happy that Risa had interrupted . . .

"Um . . . do we really have to go in here?" Risa asked.

"Yeah, don't worry. It can't be much farther." Daisuke smiled at her before descending into the darkness. Risa sighed nervously - she couldn't see how far back the cave extended. There was, however, a handrail to keep them from running into anything.

"Are we going in?" Satoshi murmured from behind her.

"Um . . . uh . . . O-Of course."

"If you're scared . . ."

She turned and wrinkled her nose at him. "I chased Dark under worse circumstances, remember?" She quoted him. This earned her a smile, but it quickly disappeared once he saw that Daisuke and Riku were watching.

"Ahem. Let's go." He said.

They walked in a silent, single-file line, their hands holding on to the rail for guidance.

"It can't be much farther." Riku said. She was leading them, followed closely by Daisuke . Risa was next. Behind her was Satoshi.

"Good, because my feet hurt." She said. "Will we be able to sit down once we reach the top?"

"I'm sure they'll have a place for us to rest."

They rounded a corner. "Hey! Look! There's the end!" Sure enough, there was a dim light shining at the top of a stairwell. Relief filled Risa. Soon she would be able to rest. With renewed energy the group made their way toward the exit.

The sunlight was too bright after being in the cave. Risa covered her eyes and looked around. They had indeed made it to the top of the volcano. They were standing on a flat, grassy precipice. A fence blocked off the edge. Risa shuddered. That was a _long _way down.

Up ahead there was a viewing platform. It was shaded and had benches to sit down. They all gladly took a seat, and Risa stared in wonder at the beautiful island. They were so high that she could see the beach. She took a picture of it, then one of Satoshi when he wasn't looking. He turned and gave her an irritated look, but she just laughed and snapped another picture.

"Ooh! That was a good one!" She laughed. "You know, you're kind of cute when you're mad." _Whoa Risa. Down girl._ She realized with a start that she was making her flirting terribly noticeable. She swallowed and looked at him, but he didn't seem to notice. She supposed he was used to girls telling him he was cute. It certainly was true . . .

" . . . What?" He asked, and she realized she had been staring.

"Ah . . . I . . . uhm . . . n-nothing." She said, embarrassed. "I was just . . . you know . . . thinking."

"Oh." He said softly.

"Um . . . Satoshi-kun?"

"Hmm?"

" . . . You were right . . . it _was _worth it." She looked at the view, a soft smile on her face.

------------------------

_Jeeze Galinda01! Corny much?_

_------------------------_

All good things must come to an end eventually, and it was only a matter of time before Saehara showed up, his camera flashing non-stop.

"Well well well! Look at what we have here! The two love birds sitting side by side! Hiwatari, your girls will _love _this!" He gasped. While Satoshi fought back the urge to throw Saehara off of the mountain, Riku stood up.

"Well, that was fun and all, but it's getting a little crowded up here." She cast an evil glare at Saehara. "Let's go get a snow cone."

"Oh yay!" Risa jumped to her feet, suddenly not tired anymore. "Cherry snow cone, here I come!"

Truthfully, the climb back down was easier than the climb up. Much easier. They made it in nearly half the time, but it was mostly due to Risa's newfound motivation. She only complained a few times, and she didn't even ask to stop once. She was rather proud of herself when she reached the bottom.

Her day was even brighter when it was _Satoshi _who paid for her snow cone. He had bought her ice cream the night before, but that didn't count because they had been alone and she had been upset.

She looked up at him shyly. "I'll pay you back."

"Don't worry about it." He said, trying his snow cone. (He'd gotten blue raspberry.) She smiled and looked away, certain she was blushing. She wished she didn't blush around him so much - he must already know that she liked him. Good God . . . she was barely getting over Dark! And she already was falling for another guy? And not just any guy!_Satoshi Hiwatari!_

Satoshi Hiwatari . . . the boy with his very own fanclub. The 15-year-old middle school student with a college degree. The chief commander of the police force and the last living Hikari. He ignored every girl in school, had turned down every girl in his fanclub . . . what made her so different.?

Of all the people . . . _why Satoshi?!_

Then again, did she really have a choice in the matter? It wasn't like she had _wanted_to like him! Quite the opposite, actually. Just a few days ago she hadn't even liked him as a _friend_! And now? Now she found herself thinking about him even when he wasn't around! Oh yeah . . . it was true. She _totally _had a crush on Satoshi Hiwatari. She couldn't figure out which was worse - falling for a guy you used to dislike after only a few days. . . or falling for a guy you _know _would never like you back.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"Yeah . . . I'm just a little tired. That was a long hike."

"Hmm . . ." He looked away. "Have you . . . have you told your sister about . . . you know . . . last night."

"No! And you had better not say a word, Satoshi Hiwatari!" She hissed, then realized both Riku and Daisuke were MIA. "Ugh. I wish they would quit doing that."

". . . Doing what?' Satoshi asked. He really could be oblivious sometimes.

"Um . . . well, it's mostly Riku's idea. She thinks that if she leaves us alone for long enough . . ."

"Oh . . . _that_ . . ." He rolled his eyes. "Well . . . if I _were_ going to ask you out, I wouldn't do it just because she left us alone. I would do it when _I _felt like it."

"_Really_?" She asked. He smirked.

"Yeah, but of course that's a big _if_."

"Oh, right. Of course I wasn't being serious." She laughed. "And _if _you were to ask me out, who's to say I would say yes? I mean, really, Riku doesn't know everything about me."

"So you don't have the whole twin mind power thing?" he smirked.

"Nope! She has _no_ idea what I'm thinking!" She smiled brightly. He felt vaguely aware that he enjoyed seeing her smile. It was . . . nice. She had a very nice smile. He added that to the growing list of things he liked about her. Her hair . . . her smile . . . her voice . . . and then . . . those eyes, so full of feeling that it seemed impossible someone could carry so much emotion in their eyes. She couldn't keep a secret - those chestnut eyes always gave her away. So why was it that he suddenly couldn't tell what she was thinking? He couldn't understand why her eyes had suddenly become so guarded when she was around him.

The truth was, it was the honesty in her eyes that had first attracted him to her. He had liked her for some time now. No . . . _liked _wasn't the word . . . he had been . . . slightly _infatuated _with her. It wasn't that he liked her as a person . . . at least, not at first . . . but he had always thought she was pretty. Very pretty. _The most feminine looking girl in school. _Of course, he had never liked her attitude enough to take her seriously. For a long time she was only a pretty face. And anyway, he'd been too busy dealing with Krad to think about any type of romantic relationship.

_Krad. _Krad didn't like her eyes. Of course. That made sense. Anything Satoshi cared about Krad hated. That was just his way. He wanted to destroy everything that Satoshi loved. Jealous homicidal bastard . . .

"What are you thinking about, Satoshi-kun?" Risa asked curiously. He realized he had been silent for a long time.

"Nothing really." He murmured. "At least . . . nothing of any importance."

"Hmm . . . do you remember the time during the production of _Ice and Snow_ that that girl freaked out because she found out she was going to get to put makeup on you?"

"Um . . . yes. Why?"

"That's what _I_was thinking about. It was funny, because you didn't seem at all happy about it." She put her and over her mouth and giggled. "All of your fan girls were freaking out because you were wearing makeup . . . but _I'm _the only one who has seen you in full out drag."

"Ah, do we have to bring that up again?" He asked, his voice hinting at humor. She laughed aloud this time, and his heart skipped a beat. He enjoyed making her laugh . . .

------------------------

They spent the rest of the day together. Shameless flirting ensued - completely on Risa's part, of course - but Satoshi didn't seem to mind. Either that, or he just didn't get it. This was the way girls normally treated him, after all. Maybe he just thought it was the way girls were.

"Satoshi-kun! Satoshi-kun! I think I found a shark's tooth!" She ran to him and held up the object she had found in the sand. They were walking along the shore of the public beach, Risa wearing yet another summer dress, and Satoshi in khaki pants and a dark shirt. He took the object and observed it closely.

"It's a rock, Risa-san." He said. She looked disappointed for a moment, but then smiled up at him.

"Okay! Well, I'll keep it anyway."

"A . . . rock?" He smirked. She grabbed it out of his hand.

"Yes!" She said defensively. "So what if it's just a rock? It's pretty and I like it?"

"Hmm." He bent down. "How about this instead?"

She gasped. How could she have missed such a beautiful conch? Oh . . . because it had been buried halfway in the sand. It was about as long as her ring finger - small compared to some of the ones she had seen for sale in the hotel - but that didn't matter because it was absolutely the most beautiful shell she had seen in her entire life. It was coral-pink and white on the outside, and the inside glistened like a rainbow.

"It's . . . Satoshi-kun, it's beautiful." She said. He handed it to her, and their fingers touched briefly. Risa was suddenly reminded of that incident on the beach a few days before, when Daisuke had given her sister a shell. He obviously remembered too because . . . was he . . . _blushing_?

Their eyes met. God . . . his eyes were so . . . _blue_! Risa felt a blush spread across her face, but she didn't care. He was blushing too. That must mean . . . that must mean something!

He raised his hand and hesitantly touched her hair. She remembered, vaguely, a time a while back, on a completely different beach, when he had touched her hair. She had almost drowned, and had awoken to find him on the beach with her. How had she forgotten that?

"Risa-san . . ." He said gently. "We should go. It's starting to rain."

Ah . . . predictable Hawaii weather - always ruins the best moments . . . Reluctantly they made their way back to the hotel. She paused at the door when he dropped her off at her room. He looked down at her, smiling slightly.

"So . . . Daisuke and I will meet you and your sister here at seven?"

"Yeah . . ." She said. She was looking forward to dinner tonight.

------------------------

_Well . . . I'll update as soon as possible. I don't really have much to say about this chapter. Just please review. It makes my day every time I get a new review. _

_P.S. Sorry Abby. I lied. This chapter didn't turn out the way I thought it would. Still friends?_


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

_Ooh! How lovely! It's one of those rainy days where you just LOVE to write. I'm sitting in the library with a frappuccino - which I know I shouldn't have because it makes me gain weight - and writing. Right now, my dears, life is absolutely delightful._

_Also, I apologize for an offensive language in this chapter. You'll see why later._

Disclaimer: If I owned DN Angel, everything that is happening right now would've been in the manga. Also, it would be crappily drawn, as I have no artistic talent whatsoever.

"So, where do you want to eat?" Daisuke asked as they wandered the streets of Waikiki. Risa shrugged and looked up at Satoshi.

"Any ideas?"

"Not really."

"Don't tell me you plan on skipping _dinner _as well!" She put her hands on her hips and peered up at him. "Satoshi-kun, you're way too skinny."

"So you've said."

"How much do you weigh?"

"Risa!" Riku turned around. "That's none of your business!"  
"115, according to my most recent doctor's visit. What?"

She was staring at him. "Wha-how tall are you?"

"5'4. Why?"

"Because you weigh less than . . . ah . . . Riku!" She said, not wanting to admit he weighed less than _she _did. Riku turned bright red.

"Risa! You weigh just as much as I do!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." She said playfully and walked ahead. Daisuke chuckled, and even Riku had to smile.

"Hey! I have an idea!' Daisuke said suddenly. "Let's have a beach picnic!"

"That sounds like fun!" Riku said enthusiastically. "We'll need a blanket and basket of course."

"Pick a store." Satoshi said, indicating the numerous ABC stores.

"And we'll need food."

"There's a convenient store not too far from the hotel." Daisuke said.

"Alright!" Risa said happily. Satoshi looked at her, smirking.

"You mean you're not tired of the beach yet?"

"No! I could never get tired of the beach!"

"Even though bad things tend to happen to you while you're there?"

"Only twice!" She said, pouting.

"Three times. You lost your shoe the first day."

"Oh. . . ." She paused thoughtfully. "Well . . . that doesn't count. I got my shoe back, after all."

"But you got wet in the process."

". . . And you gave me a towel." She looked up at him shyly. He blushed and looked away. God, she wanted nothing more than to hold his hand. Okay, well maybe she wanted a _little _more. Was it weird that she was already fantasizing about kissing him?

They walked a little further before they heard the shouting. A gruff voice was shouting swear words as loudly as possible.

"WHORE! WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO?!" As they got closer, they could see the source of the foul language - a short man who looked like he was in his fifties, with bandages tied around his knees and ill fitting clothes. "I DARE ANY ONE OF YEH WHO DON'T BELIEVE IN GOD TO STEP FORWARD!"

"Er . . ." Daisuke looked over at Satoshi. "What should we do?"

"Just keep walking. Don't make eye contact." He yanked Risa to the right side of him so he was between her and the offensive man. Daisuke did the same to Riku, but couldn't help glancing over at the guy as they passed.

"WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT, SPIKEY?!" He shouted.

"N-nothing, sir!" Daisuke said nervously and continued walking at a quicker pace.

"IT'S PEOPLE LIKE YOU THAT GIVE YOUR GENERATION A BAD NAME!" He shouted. "WALKING AROUND WITH YOUR TWO WHORES!" When this didn't get a response, he continued. "UGLY FAT WHORES!" He screamed. Satoshi heard Risa whimper slightly, and he put a protective arm around her.

"Don't worry." He whispered. "He's all talk."

"LOOK AT YEH IN YOUR SKIMPY WHORE CLOTHES! LEWD WHORES!"

"_Whore_ appears to be his favorite word." Satoshi muttered.

"WHAT WAS THAT, BLUE BOY?!" The crazed man caught up to them and got right in Satoshi's face.

_"Blue Boy? Oh . . . the hair. Of course. Well that's a new one."_ "Can I help you?" Satoshi asked rudely.

"USELESS . . . WORTHLESS . . . FILTH!" He shouted. Satoshi looked unfazed.

"Well, if that's all you wanted to say, then . . . " He smoothly maneuvered around him, guiding Risa as he went. She was shaking slightly.

"AND YOU!" She heard him shout. She was afraid he was talking to her, but when she glanced over her shoulder she saw he had started to harass another couple.

"Sato-"

"Don't worry. He won't do anything - there are too many people around." He sighed. "You didn't . . . you didn't take any of what he said seriously, did you?"

"N-No. Of course not." She said, but she was wiping tears from her eyes nonetheless. "You know, when they said we would be going to Hawaii . . . I automatically thought it would be nothing but a tropical paradise."

"Yeah, well . . ." Satoshi glanced around. He saw an emaciated man digging through the garbage, looking for food. "This is the part they don't tell you about in the brochure. The cost of living is so high here that many people live on the streets."

"I've just had my fill of crazy people for one trip . . ."

"I know." Riku looked over her shoulder. "Our first night here, Daisuke and I saw a guy get mugged!"

"Really? Well . . ." Risa glanced at Satoshi. "Last night, I almost got murdered."

------------------------

So they told the story. And yes, Riku flipped out. A lot. But it wasn't nearly as bad as Risa had thought it would be, and once she calmed down enough to make coherent sentences she even had the sense to thank Satoshi for rescuing Risa. He shrugged it off as if it were nothing - as if his day always consisted of rescuing girls from certain danger, which it actually had, recently.

Once she was finally over the shock - it took a little while - they remembered the picnic. The walk to the convenient store was quiet - Riku was brooding in icy silence, not that Risa blamed her. It _was _wrong of her to worry her like that, and then spring it on her that she had almost died. That was pretty mean of her . . .

"Oh my gosh!" Risa exclaimed, then whispered to Satoshi "$4.99 for an 8oz bottle of milk?!"

"Milk is expensive in Hawaii. There aren't any cows, so they have to import it."

"That's too expensive for my tastes." She said, and selected a soda instead. "Now I see why people can't afford to live here."

"Well, if you're going to be homeless somewhere, it might as well be Hawaii." Daisuke said as they exited the store with their supplies. "I mean, you can become a street performer and make a money."

"Satoshi! I'll bet _you _could make a lot of money on the streets!"

Even though he knew what she meant, Risa comment struck him as humorous. "I don't think that's _my _type of profession, Risa-san."

"Oh, not _that!_" _Did Satoshi just make a prostitute joke? _"I meant with your art. I bet people would pay a lot of money for your pain their portraits."

"Well . . ." he wasn't going to lie - he was talented. "Yes, I could. But I don't plan on living here any time soon, so there would be no need."

"Oh, I know. I was just saying." She smiled, then looked at her sister and Daisuke. "Ugh . . . they're being all cute and holding hands."

Satoshi chuckled under his breath. Risa could be so . . . childish sometimes . . . it was endearing.

"SCUM! FILTH! STUPID WORTHLESS WHORE!"

"Oh . . . great." Satoshi muttered. "He's still there . . ."

"Do you know of any other way to the beach?" Riku suggested

"Not without going through the "bad" part of town."

"You mean this isn't the bad part of town already?" Risa asked him.

"No. I went through it last night looking for you." He said. "It's not a place you want to visit."

"So . . . then."

"Just ignore him."

"IT'S IMMORAL FILTH LIKE YOU THAT CAUSE ALL THE CORRUPTION IN THE WORLD TODAY!" He was yelling at an eight-year-old. "STUPID, FILTHY WHORE!"

The girl simply looked at him and clung to her mother's hand. Beside her stood a little boy. They were obviously tourists - the three of them just stood there staring at him while he ranted. Then the little boy raised his camera and snapped a picture of the guy. He didn't seem to notice.

"IGNORANT COW!" He was yelling at the mother, but as soon as he spotted Daisuke's hair, he turned his anger toward him. The woman, seizing this opportunity, grabbed her son's hand and dashed off. "UGLY POINTY HEADED MORON!" He screamed. "DEPRAVED! EVIL! WICKED! YOU DON'T DESERVE THE LIFE YOU'VE BEEN GRANTED!"

"Just keep walking." Satoshi muttered under his breath.

"WHERE HE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?!" He bellowed.

"Satoshi . . . he's following us." Risa whispered.

"Keep walking." Repeated Satoshi "Just ignore him." He glanced around. "Where are the police when you really need them?"

"BLUE HAIRED HEATHEN!" He shouted. Satoshi snorted with ill suppressed laughter. "WHAT'S SO FUNNY, YOU DEMON!"

"Ah, if only you knew." he said over his shoulder. Risa grabbed his arm.

"Satoshi! Don't egg him on!"

"LITTLE BITCH!" The crazy guy yelled at Risa. "MUTANT-UGLY-WHORE!"

"I think he's running out of insults." he looked at Risa. "Don't pay any attention to him. Don't listen to what he says. He doesn't know what he's talking about."

_"_WORTHLESS, ILL-BRED STREET WALKER!" he yelled, focusing on Riku this time. Satoshi watched Daisuke stance turn defensive.

"Ignore him." He said. "He can't do anything."

"SHUT UP, FOUL MOUTHED FAGGOT! GOD WILL PUNISH YOU FOR YOUR SINS!"

"He's preaching to us about sins, with that kind of language?" Risa muttered. Satoshi smirked at her.

"I know. He calls _me _foul mouthed? I don't think he really knows what he's saying."

"WORTHLESS SCUM! YOUR GENERATION IS GOING TO LEAD THIS WORLD INTO CHAOS! IT'S FILTH LIKE YOU THAT CAUSES ALL THE PROBLEMS IN THE WORLD! YOU SHOULD ALL BE LOCKED UP!" He paused. "WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT, WHORE?!" He shouted at Risa. He took three striding steps toward her, and she screeched. Satoshi placed himself in front of her and stared down the guy. Satoshi was about half a head taller than him, and glared down at him with hatred.

"DEMON!" He shouted. "YOU SPAWN OF THE DEVIL!" He shouted up a him.

Satoshi said nothing. He didn't need to - he could make his presence go from gentle to looming in an instant. Risa cowered behind him. "If you touch her." He said calmly. "I _will _kill you." He put a protective arm around Risa again, and Daisuke took Riku's hand. "We're gong to leave now." Satoshi continued. "_Don't_ follow us."

He continued shouting insults at them, but remained rooted to the spot. Apparently Satoshi's dark aura had an effect on him after all. "YOU'RE A DEMON!" He could be heard shouting. "A MONSTER! GOD WILL PUNISH YOU!"

------------------------

"Finally!" Risa said once they reached the beach. She grabbed the blanket and spread it out for them all to sit on. "I feel so much safer here."

"Yeah. This is a pretty safe place to be." Daisuke said. "We're only a few blocks from the hotel, and there are stores right up there."

Riku opened the basket and pulled out their ingredients - bread, cheese, mustard, turkey, ham, and bologna. They had also brought apples, oranges, and chocolate for desert. (Risa had insisted)

The clouds were gone, leaving a clear night sky in their view. Risa munched on a sandwich of turkey and cheese and gazed thoughtfully up at the stars.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Riku asked, sitting down next to her. She nodded, smiling.

"Even though we're in a city . . . when we're out here on the beach you can see so many stars . . . "

"Are you glad you came?"

"Yes."

"Even though all these bad things have been happening to you?"

"Yes." She smiled at her sister. "Because every time something bad happens . . . Satoshi-kun is there to help me." She glanced over at him. He was looking at her, smiling gently. She smiled back and he turned his gaze out to the ocean. Risa sighed. "I just realized how boring Azumano is compared to Hawaii. Look at all the stuff that has happened to us here."

"I know. It's kind of like going from black and white to color." Satoshi said softly.

"Hey! Cheer up!" Daisuke said suddenly. "We still have four more days! And on Sunday we get to go to the water park!"

"Yeah . . . that should be fun . . . I guess . . ." Risa mumbled. "I kind of wish we didn't _have _to go. Planned fun isn't as great as spontaneity."

"I'm still looking forward to it." Riku said. "What about you, Hiwatari-kun?"

He shrugged. "I've never really been that interested in water parks."

"Have you ever even _been_ to one.?" Risa asked.

"No."

"Ah . . . that was a stupid question. You don't seem like the "water park" type of person." She smiled, then covered her arms.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah . . . it's just getting kind of chilly."

"I know." Riku said. "We forgot our jackets."

"So did I." Daisuke said. He looked at Satoshi, who was gazing thoughtfully out at the ocean. " . . . Satoshi?"

"Hmm?" He turned and looked at them. "What were we saying?"

"Are you okay?" Daisuke asked. He nodded.

"Yes. I was just . . . thinking. That's all."

". . . What about?" Risa asked.

_Krad. _"Nothing important, really."

"Oh . . . you just looked . . . I don't know. Sad."

". . . Sorry." He said, giving her a soft smile. She rolled her eyes.

"Well, don't apologize."

_"I'm starting to sound like Daisuke." _"Alright."

She shivered, and he wrapped his arm around her. "I didn't bring my jacket. I didn't think it would get this cold tonight."

"Um . . . Risa. Do you want to head back to he hotel?" Riku looked at her watch. "It's eight-thirty. It'll be warm in our room, and we could watch a movie . . . if the boys wanted to, that is."

"Sure!" She said. "Does that sound okay with you guys?"

"Yeah, I was getting cold. Satoshi, is that alright with you?"

"Sure." He said. They packed up the remnants of their meal and made their way back to the hotel. Riku and Risa argued over what type of movie to watch - action or romance. The boys just watched them argue until finally they settled on horror. Daisuke and Satoshi looked at each other, neither one understanding how _that _came about.

Their movie of choice was a blood filled gore fest of death - two hours of nothing but blood and guts being spewed all over the set. Riku curled up next to Daisuke on her bed. It was cute how the two of them could lay next to each other on a bed, Riku wrapped in his arms, and the scene not look the least bit smutty. Of course, this left Risa and Satoshi to share her bed, which was a little awkward at first, but after the first bludgeoning Risa yelped and flung her arms around Satoshi's neck.

"Ah . . . R-Risa-san. It's just a movie."

"I know . . . but . . . it's . . . scary." She said, burying her face in his collarbone. He glanced over at Daisuke and Riku, but they were too engrossed in the movie to notice.

"Here." He whispered, pushing her away from him. He adjusted there position so that she was laying in the crook of his arm. She immediately snuggled up against him and rested her hand on his stomach. She couldn't see him smiling gently down at her, but she felt him take her hand. and hold it through the entire movie. He didn't seem scared at all.

"Wha-wha-what did you think, Satoshi-kun?" Risa asked while the credits were rolling. No one was moving. "Were you scared?"

"Not really." He said. Daisuke and Riku gasped at him from their bed.

"Are you serious? That was horrifying! And the twist at the end!"

"The idea of a guy using torturous games in order to teach people who are ruining their lives a lesson? Not really scary. Highly illogical, really, that someone who is dying could set up such elaborate games."

"Well, _I _think it's the best scary movie I've ever seen." Riku said.

"It was good." Daisuke said. "Satoshi's just like that. He likes to pick horror movies apart." He got up and turned on the light. "Oh! It's almost time for room check! Satoshi, we need to go!"

"Right." He sat up and smiled at Risa. "So . . ."

" . . . _So_?"

"So . . . I-I'll be seeing you tomorrow." He said quickly, his nerve failing him. Risa wanted to roll her eyes, but instead she just smiled.

"Okay." He walked to the door. She sighed, and decided to follow him out into the hall.

"What is it, Risa-san?"

"Um. . . . I . . . I just . . ." She grabbed his hand. Standing on her toes, she kissed him gently on the cheek. He was too stunned for words, so she just squeaked and ran back into her room.

Satoshi stood there for a moment. Finally Daisuke cleared his throat. "Really, Satoshi! We need to go!" He looked over at him, thankful that he was acting like he hadn't seen.

"Um . . . uh . . . okay."

------------------------

"So." Daisuke said, crossing his arms.

" . . . So?"

"So are you going to ask her out?"

"Er . . ." He was shocked that Daisuke would bring such a thing up. But then he realized that this was probably all Riku's doing. It was almost eleven. Their rooms had already been checked, and they were both sitting on their beds, talking. "That's my own business." He muttered.

"You should ask her soon. She's not going to wait around forever."

"Daisuke, I just started thinking of her that way." Satoshi ran a hand through his hair.

"I think you should ask her to the luau." He said. Satoshi couldn't believe he was hearing this. Daisuke Niwa advising him to ask Risa Harada out? No way. This couldn't be happening.

"But . . ." He looked down.

"But what?"

"But . . . what if . . ." He sighed, unable to believe they were having this conversation. "What if she says no?" He didn't think he could handle that kind of rejection.

Daisuke laughed nervously. "Don't worry. She likes you."

"How do you know?"

"Riku told me." He grinned. "Are you going to?"

"The luau is tomorrow night." He said. Daisuke nodded. "I don't have much time . . ."

"So you had better hurry up!"

"What? Do you want me to go ask her right now? In my pajamas? " He asked sarcastically. Daisuke smiled sweetly.

"Well . . . you can change out of your pajamas first."

------------------------

Stupid of him to even suggest it. He should've known Daisuke would take him seriously, and wouldn't stop bugging him about it until he finally gave in and changed his clothes, re-brushed his hair, and went to the Haradas' room. It was past curfew. This was _not _allowed. Sure, he had been out past curfew before, but he wanted to avoid breaking the rules as much as possible on this trip. He could see Risa wasn't going to make that possible.

He knocked on the door, then ran his fingers through his hair. Did it look alright? Ah! He shouldn't be worried about that! He never worried about that. Okay. Breathe Satoshi. Breathe. He was so used to girls asking _him _out, and him turning them down, that he didn't quite know how to go about this.

The door opened. He took a deep breath, but it was only Riku. She looked surprised to see him. "Oh . . . hello Hiwatari-kun."

"Um . . . hi. Is . . . is your sister-"

"Risa's on the balcony." She said, moving aside to allow him in. "But don't take too long. I think the teachers are getting suspicious. You know, they're really strict about you guys staying on your floor."

"I know. I'll only be a minute." He smoothly slid the door to the balcony open. Risa was standing with her back to him, staring up at the night sky. She was wearing a long sleeved, white nightgown that fluttered in the wind.

"Riku . . . I think it's going to be a full moon tomorrow for the luau." She was right. The moon was _almost _full, and in this light she looked . . . beautiful. No, she didn't _look _beautiful. She _was_ beautiful. He couldn't believe it, but he didn't just find her pretty anymore. She was beautiful to him.

"Risa-san." He said and she whirled around in shock.

"Sato-Satoshi kun!" She gasped. "What are you doing here?!"

"I came . . . to see you. I . . . wanted to see you."

". . . Really?" She blushed.

"Yes." He approached her and took her hands in his. "Aren't you cold? Your hands are like ice."

"That's just because I was holding on to the rail . . . you really came to see me?"

"Yes . . . and." He closed his eyes. "I came to ask if you wanted to go to the luau . . . with me." He opened his eyes and caught her gaze. She stared up at him in shock.

"Are you . . . are you really asking me this, Satoshi-kun?"

"Yes." He whispered, bringing her hands to his lips and kissing them. "So . . . will you?"

" . . . Of course." She said happily. A relieved smile crossed his face. "Satoshi-kun . . . I was afraid you wouldn't ask! I was afraid . . . that you didn't like me."

"I do." He whispered softly. "I do like you . . . Risa."

She smiled and looked up at him. Now came the awkward part. he wasn't sure what to do next. Should he kiss her? He had kissed her once before, after all . . . but that had been to protect her. He was naturally shy . . . an introvert . . . and they had _just _started dating. But at the same time . . . wasn't this how it was in movies? Guy asks girl out and then they share a kiss? He couldn't remember - he didn't watch those types of movies that often.

He was torn between indecision, but luckily his answer was decided for him.

"Hiwatari-kun!" Riku opened the door. "How long is this going to take? I don't want to get caught with a guy in my room!"

"Oh . . . I-I'll just. I'll be leaving then. He turned to Risa and smiled gently. "So . . . tomorrow, then?"

"Yes . . . tomorrow." She said softly. He took her hand and brought it to his lips, deciding to remain a gentleman. Her face flushed scarlet. Her expression was the picture of absolute bliss.

------------------------

_Unbelievably corny? Waaaay too long? I'm sorry . . . please update and tell me what you think. I'll be updating soon. _

_First, I have a couple of A/Ns: _

_A/N 1: Crazy Guy# 2_

_So, the crazy screaming guy . . . based off actual events. We were walking to a park and he screamed at our entire class. Mostly the girls. I was one of the lucky girls he didn't notice. He called one girl a manatee and actually chased a few others. Our band teacher tried to talk to him, but he kept screaming that we were filthy whores who didn't believe in God and blah blah blah. He doesn't know me OR my beliefs so . . . yeah. Thought I'd put him in. _

_A/N 2: Satoshi's Height_

_Alrighty, I read online that Satoshi is actually 5'2. I was like "Hell no." because it said that Daisuke is 5'2, yet in the manga you can see that Satoshi is CLEARLY taller than Daisuke. Also, I am 5'2 and I'm short, so . . . you know. He's 5'4. Don't like it? Get over it. It's how things have to be, so leave me alone!!!_

_A/N 3: Galinda01's apologies._

_Sorry about the foul language in this chapter. Please don't hold it against me._


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

_Wow! Chapter 16 already? That's unbelievable._

Disclaimer: Still don't own it.

"So . . . does this mean you two are _officially _a couple?!" Risa could hear Airi's giggles from the other end of the line. She smiled to herself. You tell one person that Satoshi Hiwatari asked you out, and suddenly you get a whole string of phone calls.

"I don't know . . . I mean . . . he asked me to go to the luau with him . . . but I'm not quite sure. He _was _nervous when he did it . . ."

"Hiwatari-kun? Nervous?! I bet it was so cute!"

"Yeah . . . it was." She smiled softly. "It was really cute."

"So, have you kissed him yet?!"

"What? Of course not!" She sighed. "I'm not even sure that he . . . meant it . . . that way." She admitted.

"What do you mean? He asked you to a luau! That's like the Hawaii version of asking someone to a dance!"

Risa wasn't so sure about that, but she didn't argue. "It just . . . well . . . it's _Satoshi Hiwatari" _

". . . And?"

"Well . . . you know how he is . . ."

"Ooh Risa! Do you think you're his first girlfriend?!" Airi gasped. "That would be so cute! Maybe you'll be his first kiss!"

"You're getting way ahead of yourself." She said, not really wanting to tell her about the pier incident. "I mean . . . he just asked me out last night . . . and he's shy, you know? It'll probably take him a while to kiss me."

"Aw, you poor thing." She said, but then giggled. "Risa, you're _so _lucky!"

"Like I said . . . I don't even know if he . . . meant it like that . . ." There was a knock on the door. "Oh! I have to go! He's here! Bye Airi!" She said hastily and hung up.

"Of course he likes you, Risa." Riku said on her way to the door. "He wouldn't have asked you out if he didn't."

She was still unsure, but she didn't have time to ask Riku because Satoshi and Daisuke had arrived.

-----------------------

"I had . . . the strangest dream about you, Satoshi." She was trying to get used to not adding an honorific to the end of his name. Daisuke and Riku didn't use them, and Satoshi _had _called her _Risa _the night before . . .

"Really?" He looked down at her, smiling slightly. "What happened in it.?"  
"Well . . ." She thought back to her dream. "We were on the volcano hike again . . . and we were at the top, but it was different. The fences were gone and there was no lookout station. It was just flat, like the top of a building, but it was grassy. Anyway, it was just me and Riku, and suddenly . . . I don't know how it happened, but I fell off of the mountain. It was really high, and I knew that I was going to die, but then someone caught me. At first I thought it was Dark, but when we landed I looked up and it was you. You had these . . . _beautiful _white wings . . . like the ones that guy . . ."

"Krad."

"Yeah! Like the ones _he _had! Except they were on you. Anyway, you rescued me, but I woke up before the dream went any further. It was just strange."

She didn't miss the startled glance exchanged between Satoshi and Daisuke, but then he smiled at her. "What a silly dream. You know my alter ego was the only one with white wings. If I were to sprout wings, especially ones as big as his were, it would tear my back to pieces." Daisuke coughed loudly, and Satoshi shot him a venomous look.

"I know. It was just an interesting dream. " She said, smiling, but the truth was she was a little confused. The dream had been so _real_, and it had felt oddly familiar.

"Hey you guys!' Ugh . . . Saehara's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. "Hey! Did you see the crazy guy yesterday?!" He ran up to them and held out his camera. "I got a picture!"

"How . . . interesting." Satoshi murmured, looking at the photograph. "Yeah, that's him."

"He called _me _a cold-blooded imp!" He announced proudly.

". . . He called me a spikey-headed moron . . . at least I think that was it." Daisuke said thoughtfully. "Or was it pointy-headed."

"It was pointy-headed." Satoshi said. "I'm a blue-haired heathen." He couldn't help but smirk.

"And we're street-walkers . . . apparently." Riku said, putting her arm around her sister. Now that the psychotic man had disappeared, they could make light of his insults.

"Awesome." Saehara said.

"I think Hiwatari-kun was his favorite." Riku said with a laugh. "How many names did he give you?"

"Hmm . . . let's see. I was a blue-haired heathen, worthless filth. . . evil . . . a foul mouthed faggot. . . demon . . . spawn of the devil . . ."

"Yeah, but I already knew that about you." Saehara said with a laugh. Satoshi glared at him but said nothing.

"Well, I think Satoshi got it the worst because he stood up to him." Daisuke said. "I think he really freaked that guy out."

"I tend to have that effect on people." Satoshi said quietly.

"You stood up to him?" Saehara asked skeptically. Satoshi shrugged.

"He was harassing the Haradas."

"Ah. I see. Standing up for your woman." Saehara said, giving him a wink. Satoshi fought the urge to hit him in the face.

"Shut up, Saehara." Risa said, glaring. "Go find someone else to bother."

"Alright, I will!" Saehara said indignantly and stomped off. Daisuke shook his head, grinning.

"You know, he _was_ right though. It's only been three days and already you two are -"

"Shut up." Satoshi said, unwilling to admit that Saehara's reporter's instincts had been right after all. Risa giggled, then pointed.

"Look! There it is! Now . . . who do I need to buy for? Let's see . . ." She began naming off the list of people she needed souvenirs for. Satoshi stared at he as the list grew longer and longer.

" . . . and Daisuke's parents . . . and . . . Hiro . . . and . . . Taki . .. Airi . . . Aimi . . . Rei, Miko and Ryo! I think that's it . . . what?"

Satoshi just shook his head. "Nothing. That's just a lot of people to buy for."

"Nah . . . it's not so bad . . .wow! It's just like in Japan." She laughed. "I feel kind of stupid now. I don't know why, but I was expecting it to be . . . like . . . outside or something."

"That's what a lot of people think, actually. A lot of students were surprised that Hawaii _had _amall. Not many people realize what a tourist trap this place is." He shrugged. Riku rolled her eyes.

"They're so shy." She whispered to Daisuke. "They're not even holding hands yet!"

"Well . . ." Oh no. Riku had that look in her eye. She grabbed his hand, then grabbed Risa's. "Make a chain so we don't get lost. At least until we get around the crowd."

Risa did as she was told and grabbed Satoshi's hand. Even though they had held hands before, they still blushed slightly. _"God, Riku. It's so obvious what you're doing." _She thought.

Once they were through the crowd, Riku let go of her sister's hand. Satoshi didn't. She smiled to herself. Ooh. She was holding hands with Satoshi . . . _after _he had asked her to the luau. Did this mean they were dating?

"Um . . . I want . . . this one!" Saehara could be heard nearby. Satoshi and Risa looked at each other and hastily let go. Her hand felt strangely empty without his there. Fortunately for them, Saehara walked into another store.

Risa tried to hold his hand again, but he quickly moved it away. She was hurt until he shifted closer and moved his hand around hers so they could lace their fingers. She smiled and leaned into his arm. Okay . . . they were _definitely _a couple.

------------------------

"The pink one . . . or the green one. Well . . . they're both so pretty! I _would _pick the pink one . . . but I already have so many pink things . . . it might be nice to have something in green. What do you think, Satoshi?" She held up the two garbs. "Pink or green?"

"I don't know. Which do you like better?" He could tell the saleslady was getting impatient - she sighed audibly, but Risa didn't seem to notice. This humored him.

"Well . . . which looks better?" She looked up at the saleslady. "How do you tie it again?"

"Miss, I've shown you twice already."

"I know! I know! could you show me one more time, please?"

The woman sighed and wrapped the cloth around Risa. She twisted the top and tied it. "There. You look lovely in the pink one. I think you should buy it."

"Hmm . . . no. I think I'll take the green one." She said, untying the pink sari. Satoshi fought to maintain his composed stature. He felt bad for the saleswoman . . . but Risa was very funny when she was shopping.

"I think that's an excellent choice, Risa." He said, putting his arm around her. She smiled shyly up at him.

"Are you going to buy anything, Satoshi?" She asked softly.

"No." He said. "They don't really have anything I like."

"What about souvenirs?"

" . . . Er . . ." He looked embarrassed. "I . . . don't really have anyone to buy for . . . so . . ."

"Oh . . . yeah." Stupid Risa. Stupid, stupid, _stupid_. ". . . Sorry."

He shrugged. "Don't worry about it. Are you hungry?"

"Um . . . a little." She said, feeling bad. "Satoshi, I'm really really sorry."

"I said don't worry about it." He gave her a brief smile to show that it was okay. "Let's see what the food court has."

"Okay." She smiled in relief and paid for her sari. "Riku, Daisuke!" Risa called. "Let's get some lunch!"

Her sister and Daisuke were in another part of the store, waiting impatiently for Risa to finish her shopping.

Risa linked arms with Satoshi and leaned on his shoulder. Riku glanced at Daisuke, smiling. He grinned back. Well . . . Riku was really good at this "matchmaking" thing.

_------------------------_

_Short chapter. Sorry. I'm just so blah right now. I think the next one will be better, through. At least, I hope it will._

_Also, the cute little "hand holding" thing . . . true story. Happened with me and the guy I liked - our friends set it up so that we would hold hands. He asked me out the next day. :D _


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

_Excuses, excuses. Sorry about taking so long to update. I think I have a sinus infection, (audience: ewe! gross!) so my DN Angel muses are going a little crazy. My thoughts are all over the place right now. I think Abby and I need to have another DN Angel marathon. _

_It's not that I want to sit around all day and watch Satoshi Hiwatari in all his sexiness - that's not it at all! It's _purely _for writing purposes only. God, I'm selfless! Oh, and Nutella and Oreos would be required as well . . . er . . . they . . . help me think. :D_

Disclaimer: No own DN Angel.

The luau was from six until nine-thirty, and would be held in the park where they had eaten lunch their first day in Hawaii - the very same park where Risa had convinced Satoshi's fan girls that he was gay. A gentle Hawaiian melody was playing from speakers someone had set up, and some couples were swaying slightly to the soft music. Lit tiki-torches provided illumination, and there was a barbecue going off to the side.

"This has "fire hazard" written all over it." Satoshi muttered as soon as they arrived.

"I don't know, I kind of like it." She said, taking his hand.

"You won't once the whole pace goes up in flames."

She frowned up at him. "Well, aren't _we _optimistic?"

He smiled slightly, and she couldn't stay annoyed with him. Especially when he leaned down and whispered. "By the way . . . you look _very _nice tonight. Green suits you well."

She looked down at her sarong - sarong, not sari, as Satoshi had corrected her - and smiled slightly. She had left her hair down, because he shad mentioned that he liked it that way, and she was wearing her white sandals.

Parent volunteers were handing out leis. Satoshi chose one with white flowers and started to put it on Risa, when a sudden flash blinded them both. They turned, blinking, to see Saehara grinning with his camera.

"Oh, I can just see the headline now: Risa Harada gets laid by Satoshi Hiwatari!"

Risa blushed crimson. "Saehara, don't you dare!"

" . . . What are you wearing?" Satoshi muttered, averting his eyes from Saehara.

"A traditional Hawaiian hula outfit, of course!" He said, and Risa knew she would never be able to erase the memory of Saehara in a grass skirt and coconut bra.

"Why?" Satoshi asked. Judging by the look on his face, he seemed just as disturbed as she was.

"Just as a joke, ya know? So, what do you think?"

" . . . It's like Ice and Snow all over again." He said under his breath. Risa giggled and took his arm.

"Come on. Let's find Riku and Daisuke."

"Hey, wait a minute! Are you two actually together?! I knew it!"

"We're not_together_." Satoshi said irritably. "It's just that neither of us had anyone to go with, so we decided to come to the luau together. As friends." Friends?_ Friends?!_ What . . . what what what? Her mind was reeling as Satoshi steered her away from Saehara. "He's too nosy for his own good." Satoshi muttered. " . . . Are you okay?"

"Um . . . yes, of course. I'm fine."

She thought back to the night before. He had kissed her hand after asking her out. It had seemed like such a romantic gesture, . . . but had he really meant anything by it? And earlier that day . . . had he held her hand because he wanted to . . . or because he felt like he had to?

"Are you sure you're alright? You look upset."

"I'm fine!" She snapped.

"You don't look fine . . ." He replied. Anger flared within her.

"So now I'm not pretty enough for you?" She asked, jerking her hand away from his. He stood there, dumbfounded.

"What are you talking about?" He asked, but she started to stalk off. "Risa." He grabbed her arm and pulled her close to him. "Do you want to go somewhere so we can talk about this?"

"No! I want you to just leave me alone!" She felt like such an idiot for think that someone like Satoshi Hiwatari could like her. Satoshi Hiwatari didn't like _anyone_, let alone someone as immature as she was.

But no matter how much she tried to get away from him, he wouldn't her go, and eventually they found that they had moved away from the party and were now out of hearing range of everyone else.

"Now, tell me what's wrong." He said, grabbing her shoulders. She looked away, unwilling to meet his eyes. She was afraid of what she would find there. "Risa! Look at me!"

"Just . . . tell me one thing, Hiwatari." She said. He flinched slightly at the use of his last name. "Were you really so clueless that you didn't understand what you were doing, or did you know, and you just wanted to be a complete jerk?"

"What do you mean?"

"When you kissed my hand! When you actually asked me out! When you held my hand in the mall! Did you really think this was the way "friends" acted? Or were you just leading me on because in your sick mind it seemed funny?!"

"Risa-"

"I really liked you, you know! I actually thought you were a nice guy. A gentleman! Despite my better instincts, I began to like you after only a few days, because I thought you were a gentleman! I thought you might like me back! Well apparently I was very very wrong!" She couldn't help herself. She looked up. His gaze trapped her, and her bottom lip trembled. " . . . I really liked you." She repeated, though this time her voice was full of hurt.

" . . . Risa ." Satoshi gently cupped her face in his hands. " . . . I like you too."

"Liar." She said, glaring up at him. "I don't even know what I am to you. A friend . . . a girlfriend . . . or just some annoying little girl that you've been forced to babysit through the entire trip."

" . . . I was . . . under the impression that you were my girlfriend." He said softly. "I thought you knew that."

"I thought so too . . . but why would you tell Saehara that we're friends? Are you embarrassed to be going out with me?" A new horror struck her. "That's it, isn't it?! You're embarrassed by me!"

"That's not it at all! I didn't think _you _wanted him to know that we were going out! The way Saehara is, he'd get it wrong and tell the entire school that we were sleeping together or something!"

She thought about it for a second. That would be very Saehara-like. ". . . Oh . . . you're - you're right." She blushed. "He probably would."

"So . . ." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and stepped away from her. "Are you still mad a me?"  
"Erm . . . n-no. I guess not. You're just so hard to read, Satoshi." She smiled slightly. "I can't understand you sometimes."

" . . . I'm weird." He said, and she giggled.

"No no! Not at all! You're just . . . different. And sometimes I don't know if you really like me or not, or if you're just doing all of this to make me feel good."

"I thought you knew me better than that." He said with a smirk. "I'm not that nice of a person. I don't go out of my way to make people's day a little brighter."

" . . . That's true." She said with a smile.

"In all honesty, I wouldn't have even come to this luau if it weren't for you."

"Really?"

"Yeah . . ." He said softly, then gave her a mischievous smirk. "Do you want to get out of here?"

"What?"

"Do you want to leave? We could check out the rest of the island if you wanted. "

"You mean like a . . . date?' She asked happily. He shrugged.

"I don't mind if you call it that." He acted nonchalant, but she could see he was struggling not to smile. However, when she gave him a happy nod and grinned joyfully at him, his smile broke through.

She glanced back at the luau. A slow song had begun to play. She _had _wanted to dance with him, but if he wasn't enjoying himself, she didn't want to force him to stay.

Satoshi smiled slightly. She may not be able to tell what he was thinking, but he could read her like a book. He gently placed on hand on her hip. She turned around in surprise and he took her hand and pulled her against him. She instinctively put her other hand on his shoulder as Satoshi began to sway to the music. "Just one dance?"

"O-of course." She beamed up at him and his heart melted. What he wouldn't do to protect that smile of hers . . .

She leaned into his chest and he rested his cheek on the top of her head. They closed their eyes, letting the music guide them. "Satoshi . . ." She whispered. He gently kissed the top of her head, making her smile into his shirt. Satoshi Hiwatari had to be the most romantic guy she had ever met.

At one point in the song he let go of her hand and wrapped her arms around her. She placed her hand on his shoulder. The atmosphere was calm as the two teens who, to everyone else, seemed to have nothing in common danced with their bodies pressed close together.

"Satoshi . . ." Said Risa in a soft voice "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

. . . Why do you like me?"

"Hm?"

"You're . . . you're so mature . . . and so many other girls asked you out . . . why me? Why did you pick me over them?"

" None of them were as lovely as you." He murmured. They were still dancing, but Risa opened her eyes.

"Oh . . ." She said, then smiled sadly. "Of course. You like me . . . because I'm pretty." She couldn't blame him. He _was _a guy, after all.

"That's not what I said at all."

"Yes it is . . . you said because I'm-"

"Lovely. It means more than just looks, though you . . . aren't lacking there either. But I was talking about your personality. I love your personality."_Love? Did he just say love? _"You . . . you're cute in your innocence. And you're very sweet. And somehow . . . I find myself wanting to smile when I'm around you."

Wow . . . he certainly had a way with words. She looked up at him, unable to believe what she had just heard. They had stopped dancing and were now simply holding each other. "Satoshi . . ."

" . . . Yes?"

She glanced down, then looked back into his eyes. "Would it . . . would it be okay . . . if . . ." She stopped. This was almost exactly how her kiss with Dark had gone. She had _asked _for him to kiss her. She had felt the need to ask permission. She didn't want that with Satoshi.

"What is it?" He whispered. "Are you okay?"

"Yes . . . I'm fine . . ." She murmured, looking up at him. Without giving him much of a choice, she stood on her toes and kissed him softly on the lips. There was a flash of light she saw even through her closed eyes, and she wondered to herself if that was what Riku meant by seeing fireworks when she kissed Daisuke.

Their kiss lasted for one . . . two . . . three seconds . . . not a world record at all, but still long enough for her to feel Satoshi kissing her back. Not open mouth or anything, just a simple . . . sweet kiss.

When she pulled away and looked up into his face, she couldn't help but giggle. "Satoshi! You're blushing!"

"Er . . . no I'm not." He said looking away.

"Yes you are! Your face is bright red." It was probably the cutest thing she'd ever seen. Satoshi Hiwatari . . . blushing over a small kiss. " . . . Satoshi . . ." She grinned mischievously up at him. "Was that your first kiss?"

" . . . Why? Was I that bad at it?"

"No! Kissing you felt . . . nice." She said. Now _she _was blushing.

"_Nice_." He said skeptically.

"Very nice." She said, looking up at him. He flashed her a brief smile.

"Well . . . if you're curious . . . yes. That was my first kiss."

She giggled happily. "Yay!"

"Yay?"

"I just can't believe _I'm _your first kiss! I feel so . . . honored."

This made him chuckle softly, then he looked at her curiously. "Well . . . I would like it if you were my second kiss as well." He said before leaning down and kissing her. When he pulled away she giggled again.

"Am I still blushing?"

"No it's just . . . you made me dizzy just now."

"I barely kissed you."

"I _know_." She said with a smile that he returned. He put his arm around her waist.

"So, what would you like to do now?" He asked, escorting her away from the luau. She smiled slightly.

"I'm a little hungry."

"Me too . . . what would you like."

" . . . I'm sort of craving something sweet."

"Hmmm . . . ice cream?' He suggested.

She laughed. "Yes! It's Haagen-Dazs time!" She smiled at Satoshi and gave him a quick kiss on the lips before they started making their way to the ice cream shop. Little did they know that from a nearby shrub, Takeshi Saehara was snickering as he looked at the picture he had take of the two of them.

"Oh . . . this is_ perfect_."

_- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - _

_Ugh . . . I want to know . . . and be __honest__: Is this story really any good? I mean , really. Is it going at an okay pace, and is the plot line understandable? I want to know, because the farther along I get, the more disappointed in it I feel. Please tell me the truth, because I want to know if there is anything I need to fix. _


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Disclaimer: Don't own. Sowwies.

"Riku! It was amazing! After we got ice cream we explored Waikiki! There was a guy with a couple of parrots sitting on his shoulders, and he actually let me hold one! They were tame, so they didn't try to bite me or anything. Then we went to the beach again. It was so romantic! Then we went to the mall and both of us got a tattoo!" She smiled at the dried henna on her upper arm. The henna was beginning to flake off, revealing the brown stained skin underneath. It was going to be very pretty.

"Cool. What type of tattoo did Hiwatari-kun get?"

Risa smiled.

( - Flashback - )

"You won't . . . pick anything out that's gross or mean, right?" Risa asked, glancing up at the list of options for tattoos. There were some cute ones, like a rose or a teddy bear, but there were also flaming skulls, snakes, and lizards. She couldn't believe she was allowing Satoshi to pick out which henna tattoo she was getting.

"What qualifies as gross?" He asked, looking at the options.

"Anything remotely related to amphibians or reptiles."

"Really? What about the snake coming from the skull's eye? That's one's kind of-"

"Satoshi! Never mind I'll pick it out myself!"

"No no no!" He grabbed her arm, smiling. "I'll make sure to pick something you'll like."

" . . . Promise?"

"Promise." He said. She smiled slightly and they approached the guy at the henna station. Satoshi spoke with him for a moment while Risa covered her ears, wanting it to be a surprise. The tattoo artist then motioned for her to sit down.

Risa watched nervously as the tattooist did his work. While he applied the henna, she tried to figure out what he was drawing, but she couldn't see. She had elected to get it on her left shoulder, and it hurt her neck as she strained to see what he was drawing. Finally she gave up and sat back, allowing him to work. Satoshi smiled down at her, then leaned down and gently kissed her on her lips. She smiled, trusting him.

"All finished." Their tattooist said after a while. She looked down at her shoulder and laughed happily.

"A butterfly! It's beautiful!" She stood up and kissed Satoshi on the cheek. "I love it!"  
"Are you getting one too?" The tattooist asked casually. Satoshi nodded.

"Yes. She'll be picking mine out for me." He said. Risa already had in mind the tattoo she wanted Satoshi to get. There was a really interesting tribal armband, and a flaming skull, but Risa didn't think that Satoshi would like anything so gaudy.

"Hmm . . . how about this one?" She asked, picking out a decorative cross. "I like it. It would look good on your shoulder."

"What is it?" He asked.

"Nu-uh!" She smirked. "You can't know until after you get it. That's the way it was with me."

"Oh . . . alright then. It's nothing . . . _horribly _embarrassing, is it?"

"No . . . not_ horribly_." She smiled at him. "Don't worry, you'll like it. At least . . . I think you will."

He sighed. "Alright. Let's get this over with then." He sat down in the chair and put his chin in his hand as the tattooist started working. "So . . . what color is this going to be, anyway?"

"It depends on your skin type. Henna shoes up different on different people Sometimes it's dark brown, sometimes it's so light it's almost yellow. You never know, really."

"I hope mine's dark brown!" Risa said happily. "I want it to be really noticeable . . . wow! That looks nice!" She said, looking at Satoshi's tattoo. It was nearly done - the henna guy was just adding the final touches. "You're really good at this."

"Thank you." He said, adding the last line of decoration inside the cross. It was amazing how much detail he could go into considering he was working with goo. "All finished."

Satoshi looked down at his shoulder, then back up at her. "Any particular reason why you chose this one?"

"I don't know. It just seemed the most . . . Satoshi-esque . . ."

"You're right. It's probably what I would've picked out."

( - End Flashback - )

"Aw, that's sweet. You and Hiwatari-kun make a cute couple."

"I know." Risa said with a smile. Riku rolled her eyes, but didn't deny her sister her happiness.

"Are you going to be spending the day tomorrow as well?"

"Yep! He said he'd be by to pick me up around noon - he knows I like to sleep in . . . isn't that sweet of him? " She giggled.

------------------------

The next morning, however, Riku was shaking her awake by 10:00. "Risa . . . Risa, wake up."

"Uhn . . . No!" She turned over and closed her eyes. Riku sighed.

"Risa . . . get up. It's Hiwatari-kun."

"Wha?" Risa sat up abruptly. "Is he here already?"

"No, but here. I think he left this under the door for you." She held up an envelope with Risa's name on it. It had already been opened. Risa looked up at her sister.

"You read it?"

" . . . I wanted to see who it was from." She said, smiling. Risa rolled her eyes.

"You knew who it was from."

"Yeah, well . . . I just wanted to see what he had to say."

"I don't get it. Why didn't he just call me?"

"He's just weird."

"Don't say that about him!" Risa said. "He's not weird!" she snatched the letter out of Riku's hand and read it. "Wow . . . his penmanship is terrible! But then . . . I think I heard somewhere that all geniuses have messy handwriting, so I guess it makes sense." She looked down at the barely legible handwriting. "It says that he has something to talk to me about . . . and he wants to meet me in the lobby at . . . eleven?!" She gasped and looked at the clock. "But that only gives me an hour to get ready!" She jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom, grabbing the outfit she had picked out the night before on her way.

She took a "quick" (thirty minute long) shower, then blew her hair dry, deciding to leave it down again.. She was glad she had brought her green summer dress - Satoshi had said green was her color. It was slender around her waist and had a white belt to accentuate it. It also left her butterfly tattoo visible for all the world to see. It had turned out really pretty - a light tan color.

"Okay, Riku! How do I look?" She did a quick spin for her sister.

"Fine." Said Riku. "You're going to be late."

"Ah! You're right!" Risa grabbed her purse. "I've got my phone if you and Niwa want to meet up with us later."

"Alright. We really should double date sometime now that you two are officially a couple."

"Yeah!" She chuckled and gave her sister one last bright smile before leaving for the lobby.

In the elevator, she began to wonder again why Satoshi had written her a letter, rather than just call her. It was sort of romantic to receive letters, but she had grown to like the sound of his voice. She would've preferred that he had called her.

He wasn't waiting for her when she arrived, so she decided to go sit by the fountain to wait . . . and wait . . . and wait . . . she sighed and pulled out her cellphone and looked at the clock. HE was already ten minutes late. That was very un-Satoshi like. The letter had said eleven, hadn't it? She was certain it had . . .

" Hello Harada." Risa turned around to find a group of girls advancing toward her. Oh . . . no. "We were just looking for you."

"Really?" Risa asked, standing up and taking a step back. "What did you want."

"I think you know what we want." The leader of the group, a girl Risa recognized as Nana Ando, stepped forward and poked her on the shoulder. "We know you're going out with Hiwatari-kun, and we don't like it at all."

"How did . . . how did you find out?"

"Oh, we have our ways." She said with a grin. Oh, Risa had almost forgotten. They were stalkers.

"So, what do you want?"

"We want you to stay away from Hiwatari-kun." Nana demanded.

"Oh." She said crossing her arms. "Do you now? Well I'll have you know that he sent me a letter to meet him, and we're going to hang out today . . ." Even as she said it, the truth dawned on her. " . . . You wrote the letter, didn't you?"

"Yep!" The lead fan girl looked highly pleased with herself.. "It took you long enough! It seems like if you really cared about Hiwatari-kun, you would know what his handwriting looks like by now."

"Actually, _I_ care about him enough to know that he doesn't like to be stalked. That's why I don't know what his handwriting looks like." She replied coolly. The fan girls looked toward their leader, expecting her to launch an all out attack. Instead, she just smiled coldly and crossed her arms.

"You think Dark liked being stalked by you?" She asked.

"Oh no! You are _not _using that one against me again!" Risa put her hands on her hips and glowered at the girl in front of her. "I don't care what you think! Satoshi doesn't like you! He likes _me_! And there's nothing you can do to change that!"

"You don't really care about him!" The leader of the group took a step forward.

"I care about him more than any of you! You just like him because of the way he looks and the fact that he makes good grades! You don't like him for who he is as a person! You only think about how you would look next to him. _You _don't care about him!"

"How dare you say that?!" The leader said and shoved her back. Risa stumbled but regained her footing.

"Don't you touch me." She said, her stance turning defensive. They snickered.

"Ooh! I'm so scared! What are you going to do, Harada? Get your sister to beat me up?" The girls giggled cattily, but Risa raised her chin.

"You're just jealous because he picked me over you."

"No, we care about his well-being! We just want to protect him from people like you!"

"What are you, his mother? And what do you mean people like me?"

"People who want to use him! Face it Risa, you're only using him to replace Phantom Dark!"

"That's not true!" Risa flared.

"Face it, Risa, you only care about how it'll look when everyone sees you with him!" She accused. "You never even liked him until he started paying attention to you! You never even _noticed _him!"

"You -You don't know what you're talking about!" Risa cried, then realized she was shouting in the middle of a crowded hotel. Some people had stopped to watch the drama unfold. She glared at the leader of the fan girls. "He hates you. All of you." Risa hissed in a quieter voice. "Just leave him alone."

"You leave him alone." Nana challenged. "We liked him first."

"Who cares? No matter how long you wait, he's never going to like you. You're not lovely enough for him." With that, she spun on her heel and headed directly for the elevator, signaling that the conversation had come to a close. Nana, however, wasn't finished with her, and hunted her until they were alone in the elevator.

"I'm going to ask you one more time." She said, grabbing Risa by the shoulders and pressing her against the wall of the elevator. "Leave Hiwatari-kun alone. I won't be so nice next time."

"You're not being nice now." Risa said, shoving her back. "Stay away from me. Satoshi can date whoever he likes. You don't own him. You know nothing about him!"

"Maybe not, but I know enough to know that your not good enough for him." Suddenly she struck Risa across the face. Hard. Her eyes clouded with tears as warm pain spread across her right cheek. "You think you're so much better than everyone else, but you're nothing but a selfish, stuck up brat. You know that if Phantom Dark showed up again, you would leave Hiwatari-kun in an instant! That's just the kind of person you are, Risa Harada! Hiwatari-kun was never good enough for you until you had no one else!"

The elevator stopped and the doors opened to reveal a very shocked Riku and Daisuke. Risa looked at them through her tears.

"D-Don't tell Satoshi!" Was all she said before shoving past them. She ran down the hallway to her room, not caring who saw her. She didn't care that she was in a hotel and could get in trouble for running. She just wanted to get back to her room.

"Risa! Wait!" Riku's voice could be heard from back down the hall. She ran harder and almost passed her room.

Once she was inside she locked herself in the bathroom, knowing any minute now Riku and Daisuke would show up. She couldn't very well lock her sister out of her own room, but she could lock her out of the bathroom. She sank to the linoleum floor and stared straight ahead, letting the tears fall.

Her cheek hurt. It wasn't terrible, but it hurt. But that wasn't why she was crying. As much as she hated to admit it, Nana had discovered her weakness. _"Face it Risa, You're only using him to replace Phantom Dark!" _She shivered. No! That wasn't true! She would never stoop so low as to use Satoshi . . . _"You never even liked him until he started paying attention to you!"_Nana was wrong! She had to be! _"Hiwatari-kun was never good enough for you until you had no one else!_"

"Satoshi . . ." Risa whispered, crying. Nana's words were terribly cruel. What hurt worse what the fact that Risa knew they were all true.

------------ ------------

_Hello everyone! Thanks so much for the wonderful reviews! I love you all so much! You made me feel so much better! Please review for this chapter, and I'll have the next one up as soon as I can. _


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

_Wow, another long chapter! Hmm. . . well, I hope you enjoy this one. Hehe, everyone pretty much said the same thing in the last chapter: OMG! Risa! That skank! Okay, maybe not in those words . . . but you were all thinking it! _

Disclaimer: Not mine.

"Risa, please come out." Riku knocked on the door again, but Risa stayed put. She had moved over to the sink was now leaning against it's marble cabinets. "Risa! Open up the door!"

"Risa . . . what's wrong?" Daisuke asked. "Why are you doing this?"

She didn't want to tell them. She felt too terrible about it to tell anyone, especially the world's most loving couple. They had _no _problems - they were so happy it was nearly sickening. She knew Daisuke didn't have to worry that his girlfriend was a selfish slut - Riku wasn't like that.

_"But what about me?"_ She asked herself. _"Am I just going out with Satoshi because we would look good together? I really like him . . . so why is it that I never noticed him before?"_

"Risa! At least let us know that you're alive!" Riku called.

_"I . . . I hate to think that I would leave him for Dark . . . I don't think I would, but . . ." _She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. _"But what if I'm not really over him after all? What if . . ."_

"Risa!" Riku said and banged on the door.

"Riku, not so loud." She heard Daisuke say. "We're in a hotel . . ."

"Sorry, I'm just . . . Oh, I'll get it. It's probably Hiwatari-kun. He'll know what to do."

"No!" Risa shouted.

"Well at least we know she's alive." Riku muttered. "Hiwatari-kun, I'm glad you're here."

"Where is Risa?" She heard him ask. "We were supposed to go out today." She closed her eyes and put her head in her hands.

"She's locked herself in the bathroom." Riku muttered. "She won't come out."

"Risa?" His voice was quiet as usual, but somehow it was completely audible even through the door. "Are you in there?"

"No!" She shouted, feeling childish.

"Risa, what's the matter?" Worry was evident in his voice.

"Nothing! Just . . . just leave me alone!" She put her head in her hands and started crying softly.

------------------------

On the other side of the door, Satoshi looked at Daisuke and Riku. "Did something happen?"

"Yes." Riku went into 'sister-defense' mode. "I think one of your rabid fan girls attacked her."

"What?!" His voice was angry, but Riku glared up at him.

"Riku!" Risa's voice screeched from the bathroom. "I told you not to tell him!" Riku acted like she didn't even hear her.

"That's right, Hiwatari! They wrote her a letter and signed your name to lure her down to the lobby." She shot him a venomous look. "I hope you're happy!"

" . . . I didn't . . . I didn't ask for this to happen. I didn't think they . . . I didn't even consider how _they _would react . . . " He said softly. He put a hand on the door. " . . . Risa please open the door . . ." There was no answer. "How long has she been in there?"

"About twenty minutes." Riku said, still glaring at him. "Knowing how Risa is, she could stay in there all day."

He closed his eyes and leaned his head against the door. "Risa . . ." He sighed and looked at Daisuke. "Have you tried picking the lock?"

"Yeah . . . but because it locks from the inside only there's no way to pick it." He said. Satoshi nodded and pulled out his wallet. When he selected a credit card and started sliding it between the doorframe and the door while turning the doorknob, Riku rolled her eyes.

"That's the oldest trick in the boo-" She stopped when the door made a gentle clicking sound. Smirking, he opened the door a fraction, then held his hand up as Riku started to make her way toward it.

"Let me talk to her." He said. "It's . . . kind of my fault, after all."

"You'll need a better reason than that." She said, taking another step toward the door. He placed himself in front of her.

"Okay. Let me talk to her. I am her boyfriend, after all." With that, he slipped into the bathroom and locked the door before Riku could get in.

Risa was sitting in the floor, her face stained with tear tracks. She covered her eyes so she couldn't see him and turned away, crying.

"Risa . . ." He said gently. "Risa . . . please look at me."

"No!" She cried. "Don't look at me."

"Why not?" He asked, sitting down next to her.

"Because . . . I-I look awful. My eyes are all red from crying and . . ." She sniffled. "Just don't look at me right now!"

He smiled gently and took her hands. "You don't look awful, Risa. Please, look at me." She finally forced her hands away from her face and peeked ruefully up at him. Her smile had vanished completely, and it made his heart constrict. He had to look away from her. Seeing her like this, and knowing it was partly his fault, was too much.

"I told you I look awful!" She said, crying.

"Risa, you don't look awful." He said, moving closer to her. He took her face in his hands and made her look into his eyes. "You don't. You're very pretty."

"You're my boyfriend. You have to say that." She muttered.

"No I don't." He said, playing with her hair. "I may be your boyfriend, but I still have a right to my own opinion, don't I?" When she didn't smile he kissed one corner of her mouth, then the other.

"Satoshi . . ." She whispered.

"Smile for me." He murmured against her lips. "Please." When he pulled away she gave him a weak but sincere smile. His fingers tangled gently in her hair as he spoke. "What happened?"

"Riku already told you." She said.

"I know . . . but I want the whole story from you . . ."

"It was just . . . I don't know. A teenage girl thing, I guess. It was stupid, really. Not even that important."

He took wet washcloth and wiped away her tears. " . . . She hit you." He said softly. She nodded.

"But it's not a big deal, Satoshi!" She said but he was already look away. Though his face remained composed, she could tell by his eyes that he was furious. "Please . . . please don't be mad."

"I'm not mad at you." He looked back at her.

"I know you're not! Just . . . .don't be mad at all!" Risa grabbed his arm. "I don't want you to be angry, Satoshi."

"Which one was it?" He asked. Risa wasn't sure if she wanted to tell him.

"I . . . I don't remember." She said quickly. She saw Satoshi clench his jaw before closing his eyes.

"Don't . . . lie to me." He said as calmly as he could. "I . . . don't like it when people lie to me." He looked at her again, and there was a coldness in his eyes. "I don't like secrets, Risa."

"Ando! It was Nana Ando!"

"Er . . ." He looked confused. " . . . Which one is that again?"

Risa smiled slightly. "You have so many, it must be hard to keep up with them all."

"No, that's not it. I just try not to pay attention to them. I don't really know one from another. Which one is Ando again?"

"Well . . . she has long dark hair and green eyes . . . " _"She's kind of pretty" _ Risa grudgingly admitted. When he still didn't answer, she added. "She's the leader of the fan girls."

"Oh, _that _one?!" Satoshi looked appalled.

"Yeah, why?"

"Suddenly it makes sense." He grimaced. "She's the worst of all of them. Mostly they leave me alone after I turn them down. But not her. She went as far as to try to cut a lock of my hair when I wasn't looking."

"Oh my gosh! Really?"

"Yeah."

"That's . . . really creepy, Satoshi."

"I know. I've also caught her trying to steal my glasses. I took them off for two seconds and when I turned around they were gone. Then when I took them back from her she nearly fainted because I touched her." He shook his head. "I've been considering a restraining order."

"Wow . . ." She knew his fan girls were bizarre, but this was just insane.

"Risa . . . are you ready to get up now? The floor is getting a little uncomfortable."

"Oh . . ." She said softly. "Um . . . sure . . ." She allowed him to help her to her feet. He reached for the handle of the door, but she stopped him. "Satoshi? Can I . . . can I ask you something?"

"Of course." He turned back to her and she took a deep breath.

"You don't . . . you don't think that I'm . . ." She closed her eyes and swallowed past the tears that were starting to form again. "You don't think that I'm a . . . slut, do you?"

"Did she call you that?!" He grabbed her wrists, furious again, but she shook her head.

"No. She didn't say it . . . but she insinuated . . ." Despite her best efforts she started crying again. "She said that I'm just using you to get over Dark!" She sobbed. "She . . . she said that if . . . that if . . ." She couldn't bring herself to say it. Satoshi released her wrists and instead took her in his arms. She clung to the dark fabric of his shirt, crying.

" . . . Are you? Are you using me?"

"I don't . . . I don't know." She mumbled into his shirt. "I'm happy when I'm with you . . . and you . . . you make me not miss him anymore . . .does that mean . . . does that mean that I'm using you? I just don't know!"

"I don't think that means you're using me to replace him . . . I think it means . . . that you're still getting over him . . . and . . . maybe . . . I don't know. Maybe I'm helping you with it." He sighed.

She looked up at him, and a small smile found its way onto her face. "I . . . I think that's probably . . . right, Satoshi . . ."

"Risa . . ." He whispered, looking down into her eyes. "If they say anything else to you . . . don't listen to them."

"I know." She said, looking down.

"No! I wasn't finished." He said and she looked back up at him, surprised. "If they . . . if they try to hurt you again. . . . . physically or otherwise . . . I want you to tell me. Don't try to keep it a secret from me."

"Okay . . . Satoshi." She said softly. He kissed her gently her forehead before opening the door. Riku immediately latched on to her.

"What happened, Risa?" She asked. "Tell me everything!"

"If you'll excuse me, Satoshi and I have a date." She wormed herself away from her sister and quickly ran a brush through her hair. A soft smile played on Satoshi's lips as he watched her, but it disappeared as soon as he realized Riku was watching him.

"So . . . what happened, exactly? Was I right?"

"Yes . . . you were. It was one of them. But I think Risa would rather tell you herself . . . once she feels like it." He said coldly and turned back to look at Risa. He got the impression that Riku didn't like him . . . at all, even though she had been _painfully _obvious in her attempts to set him up with Risa. So why the sudden attitude?

"Are you ready?" Risa asked, taking his hand. He nodded and opened the door for her. Riku cast him another evil glare as he left, but he shot it right back. He was silent until they were inside the elevator.

"Usually it wouldn't bother me . . . but I would like to know . . ." Satoshi sighed as the elevator descended to the lobby. "Why does your sister despise me?"

"Riku? She doesn't despise you!" She giggled at the notion. "She kind of set us up, remember?"

"Yes."

"You're silly. I think the whole "police commander" thing has made you a little paranoid." She looped her arm through his and leaned against him. He grinned down at her.

"Paranoid? Me?"  
"Very much so."

" . . . Maybe." He said with a smirk. The elevator doors opened and Satoshi glanced around the lobby before putting his arm around her.

"Satoshi?"

"They're not here."

"Oh . . . your fans?" She asked as they stepped into the lobby.  
" . . . Yes. Them. Though it really shouldn't matter if they see us or not. Everyone probably knows by now anyway." Even as he said it, a girl two grades beneath them came running up to them, her blond pigtails bouncing up and down in her haste to reach them.

"Harada-san! Hiwatari-kun!" She panted. "Is it true what everyone is saying?"

"Ah . . . Wh-what are they saying?" Risa asked nervously.

"That you two are . . . you know . . . a _couple_!"

"That would be correct." When Satoshi spoke to her, she looked like she was about to faint with happiness.

"Oh . . . wow." She breathed, staring into his eyes. " So those rumors about you being gay . . ."

"Oh, I was wrong about that." Risa said, smiling brightly. Satoshi glanced at her.

"How many people did you tell?"  
"Uh . . . well . . . news travels fast, you know?" Risa giggled.

"Okay, well I guess that settles that." The girl looked down sheepishly, a blush spreading across her face. "Um . . . I . . . I gotta go . . . bye." She said and quickly took off in the opposite direction of them.

"That was . . . kind of strange." Satoshi murmured. Risa looked up at him.

"Um . . . Satoshi . . . She has a crush on you."

"Oh . . . great. Another one."

"You're so popular, Satoshi." Risa grinned. He groaned.

"No . . . I just have looks that appeal to the eye." He muttered. Risa took his arm again.

"Come on, handsome. Let's go."

------------------------

Risa stood on the pier and gazed out at the ocean. They had found yet another public beach that wasn't on the itinerary, but this one was devoid of jellyfish and therefore suitable for crowds. Risa smiled at the children playing on the beach - building sandcastles and then kicking them down. It was really quite sweet.

She could feel Satoshi's eyes on her. He was standing at the end of the pier, and when she looked up, sure enough he was gazing at her intently. He smiled warmly at her, but there was a hint of tiredness in his eyes. Even though they weren't standing near each other, she could tell his face was paler than it should've been.

He held up a hand when she started to move toward him.

"Don't move." He said softly. " . . . the way the sunlight is catching your hair right now is just . . . perfect. I . . . I would paint it right now if I had my supplies . . . but as it is I would like to memorize the way you look right now." He got that dreamy, somewhat glazed look in his eyes as he added. " . . . for when I start painting." He stared at her for about ten more seconds before smiling. "Okay, I think I've got it."

"You're planning . . . to paint . . . me?"

"If that's alright." He said.

"Satoshi!" She cried, running to him. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. He wrapped his arms around her and rocked back on his heels, but the inertia she had exuded upon colliding with him was more than he had expected, and he fell backward, taking her with him. They both landed with a huge splash in the salty seawater. His grip immediately loosened from her waist, but he was able to disentangle arms from around his neck and pull her to the surface.

"Risa! Are you alright?"

"Ye-yeah." She coughed. "That was just . . . unexpected. That's all."

He smiled slightly, then suddenly turned red. "Um . . . R-Risa." He said, looking away.

"Yeah? What is it, Satoshi?"

"Your um . . . your dress is . . . well it's . . ."

"Huh?" She looked down, worried that her top had been pulled down. It was fine, but the skirt of her dress had air bubbles under it and had floated to the surface, giving him a full view of what was underneath.

"EEK!" She cried, forcing the dress down with her hands. "Satoshi you . . . you shouldn't have looked!"

"I didn't!" He said, still looking away.

She forced the air bubbles out. "I can't believe this. I really like this dress, too!"

Satoshi chuckled slightly, and she splashed him. He chuckled even more, but didn't splash her back.

"Your clothes will be fine. You'll just have to wash them a couple of times to get the salt out."

"Ah! Oh no!" She cried.

"What's wrong?"  
"My shoe!!! It sank!"

"Sank?" Satoshi asked.

"They were wedge heels!"

" . . ." He gave her a look. "Your shoes are gone?"

"Well . . . just one."

"Are you sure it won't float to the surface?"

"I felt it sink." She muttered. Satoshi sighed, but then gave her a weak smile.

"Would you like me to go after it?"

"No! You don't know how deep it is right here! And there could be . . . _things_ living at the bottom."

"Well then what do you suggest? It's a half-mile walk on concrete to get back to the hotel."

"I think . . .eek!"

"What?"

"Ewe ewe ewe ewe! The pier is _slimy _under the water!"

"It's algae." He said, smiling at her.

"It's _gross_." She said. This time he laughed aloud. It was the first time she had ever heard Satoshi actually laugh, and it surprised her. She _loved _the way it sounded.

"Risa . . ." He said, smiling. "Maybe . . . we should go back to shore now."

"Okay . . ." She smiled. "And don't worry. I can walk. It's not . . . _that _far."

"Hm" Was all he said. They swam around the dock and back to shore. Satoshi was able to touch bottom before she could. The moment her feet reached the sand she took her other shoe off and tried to walk the rest of the way.

"I feel so . . . heavy!" She muttered when they finally reached the warm beach. Her fabric felt like it was made of lead now that it was weighted down with water. Satoshi smiled at her, but then blushed furiously and looked away. Damn . . . he _hated _hormones! Risa looked down and realized what was making him blush - her wet clothes were sticking to her body, accentuating every single curve that she had.

"Um . . ." She began wringing out her skirt, though the attempt was futile. She was completely drenched. To make things less uncomfortable for the both of them, she picked at her dress to make it stop sticking to her. It didn't work, however, and she sighed.

"I guess. . . we should probably get back to the hotel so we can change . . ." She giggled. "Your clothes are sticking to you pretty bad as well."

"You're right." He said with a smirk, then took her hand. They walked up the beach together.

"Guess I won't be needing this anymore." Risa muttered and threw her other shoe in the trashcan. Satoshi chuckled again.

Once they reached the edge of the beach where sand meets asphalt, Satoshi stopped.

"What? Oh!" She cried as he swept her into his arms and carried her bride and groom style again.

"No, Satoshi! I'm-"

"You're not too heavy." He anticipated what she was going to say. "Remember? I carried you home from the other beach."

"I know, but . . ." She sighed. "I'm okay . . . I can walk, I promise."

"You'll hurt your feet." He said softly.

"But . . . "

"Shh . . ." He said. "It's fine. It's not every day I get to carry a beautiful young woman in my arms."

"Satoshi." She sighed.

"Don't worry." He smiled down at her.

"You're pale."

"I'm always pale."

"I know but . . ." She sighed. "I just don't think you should be carrying me."

"Risa." He said softly. "Would you allow Dark to carry you?"

"What?!" She gasped up at him. "What does that have to do with anything?!"

"It was . . . just a question. Undoubtedly, if I were Dark and you were still in love with him, this situation wouldn't bother you at all."

"Satoshi, you are _so _annoying sometimes!" She said. He merely shifted his hold on her in response. She groaned and laid her head against him, not wanting to say anything else. As much as she hated it that Satoshi had to carry her, she was glad that she didn't have to walk.

He carried her in silence for a little while. She closed her eyes against him, trying to block out the embarrassment of yet _again _being the damsel in distress. When she squinted back up at him a few minutes later, her heart skipped a beat. For just a moment . . . a split second at the most . . . the sunlight played a trick on her eyes, and she could've sworn she could see him with the most beautiful white wings she had ever seen. It was gone in an instant, but it was enough.

"Satoshi!" She cried, suddenly understanding why this felt so familiar.

"What?" He stopped.

"Put me down!" She said happily.

"No." He said and continued walking.

"Just for a second. Please?"

"Why?"

"Just do it!" She said and he gingerly set her down.

"Now what did you -" He was cut off as she flung her arms around his neck and crashed her lips against his. He wrapped his arms around her, unsure of what he was being kissed for, but not really caring.. She tugged him closer, her lips parting just slightly. His lips parted too and he kissed her tenderly. They were both very aware that they were in the middle of a crowded sidewalk, but neither really cared all that much.

When they broke apart, they stared at each other in shock.

"Wow . . ." Was all Risa could say.

"What did . . . what was that for?" Satoshi asked quietly.

"You saved me." She said.

"Yes . . . numerous times. I thought we already established that."

"No . . . not here . . . not in Hawaii . . .you saved me . . . when I fell off of that building.. _You _were the one who rescued me, not Dark!"

"What?" He stared at her in shock. "How could . . . how could you know that? You were unconscious!"

"I don't know . . . I guess I kind of woke up for a moment or . . . something. It was like . . . a dream that I'd forgotten . . . " She paused. "I . . . didn't know. Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"Why would I want you to know something like that? It's rather sickening, really . . . wings . . . sticking out of my back like that. I mean . . . "

"Sato-Satoshi!" She stared at him, suddenly horrified. "So when you said that it would destroy your back if you grew wings . . ."

"Yes."

"I mean . . . I saw you transform into him . . . but I never thought . . ." She put her hand over mouth. "Every time . . . oh Satoshi! It must've been so painful!" When he didn't say anything, she threw her arms around him. "Every time!"

"Don't be upset." He looked down. "It's over now. I know you must think I'm . . ."

"What?"

" . . . A freak." he said softly. "I wish it hadn't happened like that, but that's the way it was every time."

" . . . I don't think that about you at all, Satoshi." She said gently. "You . . . saved my life . . . even if I didn't know it was - ah! The jacket! And the feather! I don't know why I didn't put two and two together! I mean . . . I knew it was _your _jacket . . . but . . . I didn't want it to be . . . at the time."

"You wanted it to belong to Dark." He said softly. Risa nodded, abashed. "Yes. I'm sorry. I was such a . . . a . . ."

"Don't insult yourself, Risa." He took her hand.

"Satoshi . . ." She closed her eyes. "I just never . . . I feel bad because I never knew."

"Well, how could you know? I did my best to keep it a secret."

She stood on her toes and kissed him again, but this time it was gentle and brief. "Don't keep any more secrets from me, Satoshi." She said softly.

His smile was gentle as he scooped her back into his arms. "Really, Satoshi. You don't have to carry me."

"Don't worry about it, Risa." He said. "I'm used to it by now."

------------------------

Once inside the hotel, he was able to set her down. She felt people staring at them as they walked by. She couldn't blame them - the y must've been quite a sight to behold. Two teenagers in clothes that were only just beginning to dry, one barefoot and one with blue hair sticking to his forehead, walking hand in hand toward the elevator.

Once inside, Satoshi pressed the buttons for the seventh and eight floors and leaned against the wall.

"Ugh . . . these clothes are getting itchy." Risa complained.

" . . . Yeah." Satoshi said faintly.

"I need a shower. Hey, once we're in dry clothes, do you want to call Riku and Daisuke? We could see what they're up to.

"Sure . . . that sounds like . . . fun." He paused. 'Risa . . . does it seem kind of hot in here to you?"

"What? No . . . Satoshi, this whole building is air conditioned."

"Oh . . ." He put a hand against the wall. She looked at him suddenly concerned. He had broken out into a cold sweat, and his face had gone even paler than before.

"Satoshi . . . are you okay? Your eyes look kind of funny."

" . . . I . . ."

"Satoshi . . . .you're not going to - Satoshi!" She didn't get the question out in time. Satoshi suddenly collapsed against the wall of the elevator. She caught him around the waist and sat down with him. "Satoshi! Satoshi, wake up! Satoshi!"

_------------_

_------------_

_Yep, that's chapter 19. Hope you enjoyed it. Review and I'll try to update soon:D_


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

_Whoo. Midnight. Stormy weather. Perfect writing mood! Yay!!!!_

Disclaimer: Like I said, no own.

Panic set in immediately. Risa cradled his body in her arms and called out to him in the hopes of waking him up. "Satoshi!" She cried, holding him close. He had gone completely limp. "Satoshi! Please wake up! What's wrong?!"  
The elevator doors opened once they reached the seventh floor. Risa slung his arm over her shoulder and stood up with him. "Come on, Satoshi." She grunted, dragging him out of the elevator. He wasn't exactly heavy, but he was _tall_, which made him difficult to carry. She had to carry him on her back, which was awkward since his legs dragged the floor, but it was the best she could do.

"Don't worry, Satoshi." She said. Good lord . . . since when was her room so far away? "You'll be alright. I just . . . I just need to get you to my room, that's all." He didn't answer. She hadn't expected him to.

_"This is all my fault." _she thought to herself as she finally reached her room. _"I _knew_ there was something wrong with him. No matter how much he wanted to deny it, it's not _normal_ for someone to be that pale."_ She slipped the electronic key into the and carried/dragged him into her room, glad that no one was around. It might look a little suspicious - Risa dragging an unconscious Satoshi Hiwatari into her room. She could just imagine the rumors that Saehara would spread.

She laid him on her bed and wondered what she was supposed to do. Her first thought was that the nurse would be more apt at taking care of him, but at the same time she didn't want to leave him alone, especially when she didn't know what was wrong with him. What if he had a seizure and died? What if he woke up, confused, and didn't know where he was? She began to seriously panic.

"Satoshi . . ." She whispered, sitting next to him on the bed. She stroked his hair back. "Please wake up . . . please I . . . I'm scared. I don't know what's happening . . . I don't . . . know what's wrong with you . . . I don't know if it's just your blood pressure or if . . . if it's something else. Satoshi, you can't do this to me. Not now. Not before I get to tell you . . ." She leaned down and rested her forehead against his.

"It was . . . always you, Satoshi." She whispered. "Even before I got to know you . . . even before, when I couldn't _stand _you." She smiled slightly. "You were always . . . there." He didn't respond. "Please wake up. You have to wake up. I love you too much for this too happen." Shocked, she covered her mouth. _Love_? Had she really just told him she loved him? Where had _that _come from?

"I love you." She said quietly. "I _love_ you. So you have to wake up because . . . I . . . I can't bear to see you like this." Still he made no response. She took a deep, quivering sigh and laid down on her side and snuggled next to him. "I'm not a nurse." She whispered. "Please . . . tell me what I need to do." She closed her eyes. The only thing she could think to do was hold him.

------------------------

They stayed like that for about ten minutes before he spoke. " . . . Ri . . . sa?" He murmured. She gasped and sat up.

"Satoshi! Oh, Satoshi! You're alive."

"Uh huh." He said. "Wha . . . wha happened?" His voice was groggy.

"You passed out in the elevator. You-" She stopped and stared down at him. "Satoshi, when was the last time you ate?!"

"Uh?" He looked up at her with those beautiful, sleepy eyes of his. Then he reached up and touched her hair. "You're so pretty.' He murmured.

"So it was your blood pressure." She said softly.

"Hmmm . . ."

"Satoshi . . . don't sit up. You need to-" She stopped as he gently kissed her on the lips. Wow. That was unexpected.

"I'm okay." He breathed against her lips and kissed her again. His hand reached up to stroke her face as his lips moved to her neck.

"Sa-Sato . . . shi . . ." She breathed, torn between confusion and bliss. She shouldn't let him do this . . . he wasn't really himself . . . she should stop him . . . but . . . this felt so _good! _"Satoshi."

"Hmmm?" He asked. His lips were making their way back up her neck toward her mouth.

"Satoshi . . . I think . . . I mean . . . I _don't _think . . . that . . . we should . . ."

"I love you, Risa." He murmured. Her breath caught, then she squeezed her eyes shut.

"N-No! You don't mean that! You're not . . . you're not . . . _awake_ yet."

" . . . But . . ." He stopped kissing her and laid his head on her shoulder. "but I . . . _did _mean that, Risa."

"Food. Satoshi. You need food." She thought about it for a second. " . . . We didn't eat dinner last night . . . and you never eat breakfast . . ." She gasped. "Satoshi! You haven't eaten since lunch yesterday! No wonder you collapsed!"

She heard him sigh gently. She couldn't help but smile to herself. "Satoshi . . . are you going to remember this once your blood pressure is back to normal?" She put her arms around him. " . . . But . . . just so you know . . . I love you too."

"Mmmm . . . that's good." He murmured. "I was worried."

"Okay, Satoshi." She took him by the shoulders and moved away from him. "I'm going to see if we have anything to eat. You need food. Lay down." She commanded. He gave a non-comitial sigh but did as he was told.

"Lets see . . . let's see . . . we have . . ." She walked over to the small kitchenette and looked in the refrigerator. " . . . leftover sushi . . . no. That was from the mall. It might make you sick . . . hmm . . . Riku bought some instant rice!" She looked. "Three bags left. Great." She pulled out a bag and put it in a bowl. She then filled it with water and put in in the microwave for ten minutes. Then she went back to the bed and sat down next to Satoshi.

"Lay down." He commanded drowsily, and she stiffened.

"Er . . . Satoshi . . ."

"Please?" He added, looking up at her. She sighed and laid down on the bed.

"I'm fixing rice." She murmured. He nodded and put his arms around her.

"Rice is . . . nice." He said, then added. "That rhymed."

"I'm aware of that, Satoshi. You should be a poet."

"Huh." Was all he said, then closed his eyes.

"Don't fall asleep, Satoshi. You need to eat."

"Uh-huh." He sighed. She swallowed as he snuggled closer to her. "Let's just . . . stay like this . . . for a while." He murmured.

"Satoshi . . . this is so _unlike_ you. Are you sure you're okay?'

"Fine. Fine."

She sighed. "Don't fall asleep." She repeated.

"I said I won't."

"Satoshi?"

"Hm?"

" . . . you really scared me." She whispered.

"Sorry."

"Well . . . it's not your fault." She sighed. "I shouldn't have made you carry me."  
"I'd do it again if I had to." He said softly, stroking her hair.

"Don't do that, Satoshi." She whispered as his lips touched her cheek. I don't want you to kiss me unless you really mean it. Right now you're just doing this because your confused."

" . . . I do love you, Risa." He murmured. She sighed and closed her eyes, allowing herself to believe that it was really Satoshi talking and not his low blood pressure. She didn't want to say anything else, for fear she might say something wrong and hurt his feelings - he seemed emotionally fragile at this moment.

Satoshi seemed perfectly content to lay there in silence, holding her in his arms. She had never, _never_ thought she would ever be in this position with Satoshi Hiwatari. It was unbelievable. She smiled to herself as she thought of what the fan girls might say.

Eventually Satoshi's breath evened out and she realized he had indeed fallen asleep. She sighed, knowing that she was going to have to wake him back up once the rice was done.

"Satoshi . . ." She murmured. " . . . when you're like this . . . you almost seem . . . normal."

He sighed contentedly in his sleep and she smiled. When the rice was done she maneuvered out of his arms, careful not to wake him up. Odds were he would just fall right back asleep again.

"Hmm . . . okay. Let's see . . ." She opened the microwave. "I should be able to - ah! " She cried, back away from counter. She hadn't thought the bowl would be _that_ hot! It was only a microwave, after all. It wasn't like she had heated the rice up in an _oven_! "Ow! Ow ow ow ow!" She blew on her hand, then ran it under cold water. Where was Riku when you needed her? _She _wouldn't have burned herself making instant rice!

Okay . . . back to food. Right. She sighed and checked the refrigerator again. Riku had done enough shopping to last them another week. There was milk - which was _so _expensive here! - butter and sodas along with the rice and leftover sushi. There was also Nutella (yummy!) which Riku had gotten just for her because she was on her period. However, there was no soy sauce, which was what she had been looking for. In the cupboard there wasn't any, but she did find pepper, bread, crackers and . . . salt! Yes! It was sort of the same . . . wasn't it? Soy sauce tasted like salt!

She sliced off a slab of butter and stirred it in, then added the salt. Who said she couldn't cook? She thought she did pretty good considering what she had to work with!

"Satoshi. Satoshi, wake up. You need to eat." She brought him the rice - making sure to hold it with a dishtowel - and sat on the bed. He didn't move. "Satoshi, get up." She sighed and set the rice on the small table next to her bed. "Satoshi . . . come on." She put her hands on his shoulders and gently shook him.

"Uhn . . . huh?" He opened his eyes and gave her a bleary look. "What?" He started to sit up. "What's going on?"

"Oh, you're starting to wake up." She smiled. "I think your blood pressure is going back to normal. Here." She shoved the bowl of rice in his face. "Eat."

"What?" He rubbed his eyes. "What . . . what happened?"

"You passed out in the elevator . . . Satoshi . . . are you awake now?"

"Yes . . . I . . . I think so." He rubbed his eyes. When he looked back at her his gaze was clearer and he looked less confused. "I passed out then?"

"Yes. When was the last time you ate?"

" . . . . I believe it was yesterday at lunch."

"Here." She handed him the rice. "Eat."

"Sure." He said taking the bowl. The spoon was halfway up to his mouth before he stopped. "Erm . . . Risa . . . did you . . . cook this yourself?"

"Yes." She said. He cleared his throat and put the spoon back in the bowl.

"You know, on second thought . . . I'm not terribly hungry." He said. Risa wasn't fooled.

"Satoshi! I think I can handle making instant rice. I'm not _that _bad at cooking!"

He looked unconvinced. "Considering what I've heard from Daisuke, I wouldn't be surprised."

She huffed indignantly. "Did he say my cooking was bad?"

"He told me the story like it was a joke." He smirked. "About a time when you cooked for him . . . trying to learn to cook for Dark-"

"Ugh. Don't remind me. I've gotten much better at cooking since then - I promise! Just try it."

He looked dubious, but then sighed. "Okay. I guess I _do _need to eat." He took a spoonful and forced it into his mouth. Risa watched anxiously as he chewed, grimaced slightly, but tried to cover it up.

" . . . Well?"

"Er . . . how much salt did you put in this?"

"Um . . . not too much . . . why?"

" I just . . . wasn't expecting it. That's all."

"Oh!" She gasped, jumping up. "Here! She ran to the kitchenette.

"What -" Before he could ask, she had returned with a glass of water. "Oh . . . thank you . . ." He looked slightly embarrassed. "You really don't have to take care of me, you know. I'll be okay."

"You took care of me when I was stung by jellyfish." She reminded him.

"That was different."

"How so?"

"You were . . ." He sighed. "It just was, okay?"  
"Sure sure. Whatever. If you want, I could get you something else-"

"No, the rice is fine."

"But it's got too much salt."

"I'm supposed to eat a lot of salt if I faint. Salt or sugar, or both."

"But doesn't it taste terrible?"  
"Not _terrible_. Under normal circumstances I wouldn't eat it, but I'm usually craving salty food after something like this happens."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It's all a part of having low blood pressure." He took another bite and chuckled softly. "I can't believe you used salt. You thought it would taste the same as soy sauce?"

" . . . Yes." She admitted. He chuckled again, and she sat down on the bed next to him. "Satoshi . . . I was . . . _so _worried about you."

He looked up, surprised. "Why?"

"I didn't know what was happening. I thought that . . . I don't know. I was so frightened."

He stopped eating and set the rice on the table. "Risa . . . I don't want you to worry about me. This isn't something that happens often."

"It was my fault." She said miserably. "I knew I was too heavy. If you hadn't had to carry me-"

"I still would've collapsed. It was _my _fault for not eating. I knew I should've had _something_." He shrugged. "You had nothing to do with it. And no, you aren't too heavy."

"Hmm . . ." She mumbled. "Satoshi . . . do you . . . _remember_ . . . anything that you said? While you were . . . out of it, I mean."

" Er . . ." He gave her a startled look. "Why? Did I . . ." He sighed. "If I said or did anything _peculiar_, please remember that it wasn't me. I wasn't myself . . . and . . ."

"Um . . . you didn't do anything _too _strange." She lied with a smile. "Except you admitted your undying love for me." When he looked slightly embarrassed she giggled. "I'm just kidding! Mostly you just "Mmmhmm"ed and "Uh-huh"ed."

"Oh."

"So, do you remember anything at all?"

"Uh . . . yeah . . . did we have a conversation about cheeseburgers?"

" . . . No." She said, laughing. "No, we didn't."

"Hmmm . . . that must've been a dream then."

"Yeah . . ." She smiled. "So you don't remember anything?"

"What did I do, exactly?" he asked cautiously.

"Like I said, nothing too strange. Eat." She commanded, and he picked the bowl back up. "You mostly just laid there. You tried to sit up once or twice, but I made you lay back down."

"Hmm." He muttered noncommittally as he ate. Risa absentmindedly traced her finger along the side of her neck where he had kissed her. He looked at her for a moment, then set the nearly empty bowl aside again.

"Satoshi, you need to-" She stopped when he grabbed her wrists.

"Risa. Listen to me. Did I . . . when I was . . . in a daze . . . did I do anything that made you feel . . . uncomfortable?"

"What? No, you . . ." She paused. "not really."

"Because I recall . . . vaguely . . . kissing you." He trailed a hand over where he had kissed her. "And I don't know if it was just a dream or if . . . "

"It really happened." She said gently. He sighed.

"I was afraid of that. I'm so sorry, Risa. I wasn't thinking." He stopped and put his hands on her shoulders. "I would _never _try to do _anything _that would make you uncomfortable. I would never . . . hurt you in that way."

"Satoshi, I know that." She said, looking up into his eyes. "I know you would never try anything with me. You're far too polite to do that. Satoshi . . . you didn't do anything . . . _bad_. It was just . . . you were a lot less shy than you normally are."

"Really?"

"Yeah." She moved closer to him, and his arms slipped around her.

"What exactly did I . . . do?"

" . . ." She looked up at him for a moment then decided on a demonstration. She leaned for ward and kissed him gently on the neck. His breath caught and he closed his eyes as she moved her lips up his throat toward his mouth. "That was about the worst of it." She murmured. His eyes fluttered open and he looked back at her.

"Uhm . . ." He said softly. He quickly stood up, blushing slightly. "I-It was still . . . improper of me. I shouldn't have-" He stopped mid sentence and put a hand to his head. Risa knew what was happening and jumped up to catch him as he stumbled backward.

"Satoshi." She sighed, helping him back to the bed.

"Sorry, I got up too fast."

"Lay down." She commanded, pushing him on his back.

"Honestly, Risa. I'm fine. I need to get to my room so I can take a shower. These clothes are making my skin itch."

"Mmm . . . Okay." She allowed him to sit up. "But I'm walking you to your room."

"You've _got _to be kidding."

"Nope."

"Are you planning on accompanying me - never mind." He was about to say "in the shower" but then realized how suggestive that sounded. To cover it up, he cleared his throat and carefully stood. "I think I should be okay on my own."

"I don't care. I have to make sure." She stood as well. He sighed in defeat as she escorted him out of the room. As they walked down the hall, toward the elevator, he caught her giggling.

"What is it?"

"Nothing it's just." She smiled at the memory. "You're very . . . affectionate . . . when you're not awake."

"Again, I apologize. I promise it won't happen again."

She smiled slightly and stopped. "Satoshi."

"What?"

"I don't know. I just . . ." She sighed and looked down. "You were so . . . affectionate." She repeated. He looked curiously at her.

"I'm not normally affectionate?" When she gave him a look he smirked. "Toward you, I mean."

"Not like this."

"Hmm . . ."

"Satoshi, it was . . . " she blushed . . . "that is . . . er . . ."

"What?"

"Nothing it's just . . ." She felt herself turning even redder. "You can . . . you know . . . do it again. . . sometime. If you feel like it, I mean."

"Wait . . . you mean . . ." He blushed and looked down. "Risa."

"I know you're usually shy." She said. "I mean . . . I doubt you would . . ."

"What do you mean you 'doubt I would'?"

"Well, you were very . . . passionate. I doubt you would be that passionate if you were in your right state of mind. But the truth is . . . I kind of liked it." She was egging him on now.

"So you're saying . . ."

"You lack spontaneity." She shrugged. "But that's what I-" He cut her off. In one swift movement he pinned her against the wall. He leaned in on one elbow so his face was just inches from hers. His left hand tilted her chin up.

"You were saying?"

"Satoshi . . ." She breathed. At that moment he discarded all thoughts of remaining a gentleman and kissed her. _Really _kissed her. Her reaction was instant - she wrapped her arms around his neck and stood up straighter. His body pressed her against the wall as his hands slid down to grasp her hips. She had never . . . _never _been kissed like this before. Who would've thought that someone like Satoshi Hiwatari could put this much passion into a kiss? She never would've guessed.

They finally broke apart, gasping for air, but the moment his lips moved to her neck, all thoughts of breathing were forgotten. "Satoshi . . ." She whispered as his lips parted and he gently tasted her skin. She heard him chuckle slightly. "Wh-what is it?"

"Nothing." He murmured, kissing her neck. "Your skin tastes like salt. That's all." _And he craved salt._

She couldn't see him smirking, but she could _sense _it.. "Satoshi."

He looked up at her with those blue blue _blue_ eyes, and she grabbed his collar and yanked his lips back to hers. She heard him growl softly from the back of his throat, and it made her tug him closer. His arms snaked around her waist.

"Hey! You two! What do you think you're doing?!" They were surprised by their teacher, and they hastily jumped away from each other, guilt written on both their faces. "Wait a minute . . . _Hiwatari _?" The short balding man stared at Satoshi. "You're the _last _person I would expect this from. You usually seem so . . . reserved."

"I may be reserved, but I'm still a guy." He muttered. Risa stifled a giggle.

"And you? Miss Harada. Well, I can't say I'm surprised. I got your sister and her boyfriend yesterday." He sighed. "You two are the fourth couple I've caught _today_. This has to stop. But, seeing as it's a first offense . . . I suppose I can let you two off with just a warning. Just don't let it happen again." It was obvious that he was letting them off easy because of Satoshi. He _was_ the best student in school, after all.

"Of course." Satoshi said politely. Risa merely nodded, flushing red. Their teacher gave them one last confused look, then hastily retreated to the stairway.

They just stood there until he disappeared. Satoshi was the first to speak. "Did we just -"  
"Yeah." Risa answered. "We just got PDA-ed."

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_And so we have a coughcrappycough make-out scene. Yay! And PDA - this was a big issue on our trip. Not for me of course, because sadly I had no one. (Though I did pine for someone through the whole trip. Too bad he waited until _after_ Hawaii to ask me out. :/ )_

_Well, review, and tell me what you think! _


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

_Sorry! So so sorry! A thousand apologies for making you wait so long for this chapter. It's just that the inspiration fairy is being rude. She won't return my phone calls OR my emails: (_

_And for everyone who asked (and there were a lot of you): PDA stands for "Public Display of Affection" which is basically making out or cuddling in public. :/_

Disclaimer: Not. Mine.

"Look." Risa pointed up at the sky. "There's another plane not taking us back to Azumano." They were laying on their backs, a picnic blanket spread out underneath them so they wouldn't get covered in sand. Satoshi was absent-mindedly playing with her hair. After their little incident in the hallway, it was almost like he couldn't keep his hands off of her. Above them, the sky was a brilliant light blue.

Satoshi laughed to himself. "Yeah . . . three more days."

"Two and a half. You can't count today as a full day."

"Oh, right." He said. Risa was silent for a moment.

"I don't want to go back." She said quietly. Satoshi looked at her.

"Why not?"  
" . . . Azumano's going to seem so boring compared to Hawaii. And once we get back, we're going to have to go straight back to school."

"Yeah, that's one thing I'm not looking forward to." He murmured. "You'd think that they would give us a day off to recover from jet-lag."

What's it going to be like when we get back?" She asked quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. What are . . . what are people going to say?"

"What . . . you mean our classmates?"

"Yeah. What do you think . . . I mean . . . do you think they'll be . . . surprised . . . about us?"  
"Shocked is more like it." He said with a smile.

"Why, because someone as smart as you would go for some one as dense as me?"

" . . . No. More like someone as popular as you would say yes to a nerd like me."

"You're not a nerd!" She said. He propped himself up on his elbow and gave her a look. "Okay, well . . . maybe you are. But you're a rare nerd. You an attractive nerd."

"What about my glasses?"

"You don't have glasses anymore." She reminded him.

"Hmm." he said, laying on his back.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. But you _do _know that I have a spare set at home."

"Why?"

"I've always had to have a second set of glasses. . . the usually tended to shatter when . . . well . . . you know." _When I transformed into Krad_.

"Oh." She mumbled.

"Do you mind?"

"What?"

"That I'll be wearing them again?"

" . . . Why would I mind?"

He turned over, chuckling to himself. "Don't you remember?" He asked, then whispered in her ear. "You don't like boys with glasses."

She laughed. "Well . . . I was wrong about that. You make glasses look good."

He sniggered. "Right."

"Really. I mean, even _with _your glasses you're hot."

"So what about when I'm not wearing them?"

"You're undeniably - hey! I'm the girl! You're supposed to be telling me how pretty _I _am."

At this, he laughed aloud. "Oh, come off it. You already know you're beautiful."  
_Beautiful. _He had never called her beautiful before. Lovely, yes. Pretty, yes. But never beautiful. She blushed. "You . . . really think I'm beautiful?"

"Yes." He said simply. She rolled over to face him.

"Really?"  
"Yes."

"How beautiful?"

"Now you're just looking for compliments." He said, smirking at her.

"So?" She asked. He sat up.

"Alright then." He cleared his throat and put a hand to the side of her face. "Risa Harada, you are without a doubt the most beautiful girl I have ever met. Your hair," he murmured as he touched a lock of her hair. "Your eyes . . . your lips . . . every thing about you radiates beauty . . ." It had started out as a small joke to make her smile, but as he said it realized he really meant it. His tone went from joking to serious.

" . . . Satoshi." She whispered, sitting up. His hands moved up to cup her face, and kissed her gently on the lips.

"Hiwatari-kun!" No. Not this. Not now. They were having a moment - couldn't these girls leave him alone just long enough to be with Risa? "Hiwatari-kun, thank God we found you!" Satoshi had moved away from her and was sitting on his knees. Three of his fan girls were rushing toward them.

"What is it?" His voice was cold. "Can't you see I'm-"

"Hiwatari-kun! It's terrible! We need your help right now!"

"I doubt there's anything I could help you with." He glared. Why couldn't they leave him alone? He couldn't even go to the beach with Risa without them following him.

"Hiwatari-kun, you know CPR, don't you?" One girl asked. His attention was caught.

"Yes. Why?"

"It's Nana! She isn't breathing!"

He was on his feet in an instant, Risa right behind him. "Take me to her." He said.

------------------------

Satoshi's fan girls were standing around Nana's body, looking down. _"Some friends" _Risa thought. _"They don't look worried at all._" Then she remembered that they practically worshipped Satoshi. Of course they would think that he would be able to save her.

Nana was completely drenched, her damp hair clinging to her face. Her eyes were closed, and Risa could make out no movement in her chest to signify breathing.

"Have you called for help?" Satoshi asked automatically as he knelt down next to her.

"Uh-um . . ." One girl mumbled.

"It's a simple question." He shot up at her. "Have you called for help or not?"

"N-no."

"Why not?!"

"We don't . . . know who to call!"

"A teacher, of course!" He said. "Call one of our teachers. I'll give her CPR, but it's best if we get an ambulance here as soon as possible."

"O-Okay." The girl said, but she made no move to call anyone. No one did. Risa guessed that they were all in shock - seeing their friend like this. The truth was that she was a little shaken up herself. She didn't like Nana - at _all_ - but she didn't want her to die.

"Shouldn't you be calling someone?" She asked, glaring at Nana's followers. "She's your friend, after all."

"Well . . ."  
"Hm?" Satoshi voice made them all turn. He had titled Nana's head back and was leaning down, his face just inches from hers. Suddenly he sat back on his haunches. "Who's idea was this?" He asked over his shoulder.

"W-What do you mean, Hiwatari-kun?" One girl asked. He leaned back down so his face was close to Nana's.

"You can breathe now." He hissed. " I know you're faking."

Nana gasped for breath suddenly. Before he could move away, she flung her arms around him and crashed her lips against his. It was over in a second - Satoshi pushed her away from him, shocked, and stood up. He looked too stunned for words.

Everyone was silent for a moment, waiting for his reaction, but he just stared coldly down at Nana, who was gazing shamelessly into his eyes.

"I'm sorry," He said in the same icy tone he always used when turning girls down. "but in case you haven't noticed, I already have a girlfriend." He leaned down close to her again, so that only she could hear him. "And you had better stay the hell away from her."

He stood, but Nana just smirked saucily up at him. "Let's go." He muttered, turning away. He automatically assumed that Risa would follow him, as she had no reason to stay behind with those girls. However, she did anyway.

------------------------

"Satoshi . . ." Risa whispered as the girls started giggling.

"Oh my God! Nana!" One of them was saying. "What was it like?"

"It was _amazing_!" She sighed. "Can you believe it?! _I _just kissed Satoshi Hiwatari!"

No. No, no, no, this couldn't be happening! She felt rage flood through her as the girls continued to squeal.

"Oooh! You're soooo lucky Nana!"

"Yeah!" Another one said dreamily. "I bet it was wonderful!"

"Oh, it _was_!"

"It's even better when he _wants _to kiss you." Risa said. They all looked up at her, surprised. Obviously, they had forgotten she was there.

"What was that, Harada?" Nana asked, standing up.

"How can you call yourself his fan girls? You really embarrassed him! Can't you see that?!"

"That's not true. I think secretly he liked it." Nana approached her. "I think he liked kissing me _much _better than kissing you. After all, what would the amazing Sato-kun see in a slut like you anyway?"

Risa felt her blood pounding in her ears. Nana Ando . . . next time she would tell Satoshi to just let her die.

"What's wrong, Harada? Are you jealous because your boyfriend would rather kiss me?"

That was it. She _knew _Nana was wrong, and that she was just provoking her, hoping that she would break down and cry again. She also knew that there five of them and only one of her, and that if she attacked their leader they would be swarm on her like a plague of locusts. She knew all this, but she still lunged at her anyway.

Her hands grasped Nana's dark hair and yanked as hard as possible. She got in three good tugs before a fist collided with her stomach, causing her to release her and double over in pain. This gave them the perfect opportunity attack her - and they took advantage of it. One of them shoved her from behind, causing her to fall on her stomach into the sand. They all laughed, but Nana's cackle rose above the rest.

"Hey!" Satoshi's voice made them all stop. He ignored all of them and ran to Risa. "Risa! Are you okay?!"  
She couldn't speak - they had knocked all the wind out of her - so she just nodded and tried to breathe. Her lungs were momentarily paralyzed.

"Try not to breathe deeply." He said gently. "Or it'll hurt once you catch your breath. Shallow breaths are best when you can't breathe." She nodded and he helped her to her feet. Putting a protective arm around Risa, he turned to face his fan girls. "If I find out that you came near her again . . . if I find out you even said her _name_ . . . I'll make you regret it." He turned to Risa. "Let's go."

"W-wait!" Nana demanded. "Why . . . why her? Why not me? I've loved you forever, Satoshi!"

He turned and shot her a cold look. "_Don't_ call me Satoshi. And you never loved me."

"Yes I did! I've always loved you!" She was shouting, but he turned his back on her.

"Come on, Risa." He pulled her next to him, his arm dropping from her shoulder to her hip. "Let's go."

Nana stared at their retreating figures, shocked. How could her plan have gone so wrong?

"Nana? Nana, it's okay . . ." One of her friends said. She stiffened.

"No. It's not." She said, brushing sand off from her shoulders. "It appears that little Miss Risa Harada doesn't know who she's messing with."

" . . . Nana."

"It's not just about Satoshi anymore." She turned and looked at them. "She's going to pay for embarrassing me in front of him."

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_I don't know . . . .like I said, the inspiration fairy is ignoring me, so I don't think this chapter was that good. I'll try to make the next one better. As always, please review!!!_


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